Zelenskyy says Vatican meeting with Trump marked turning point

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said a brief private meeting with US President Donald Trump at the Vatican in April 2025 marked a turning point in their relationship in an interview with American far-right blogger and Trump ally Laura Loomer.

During the interview, Zelenskyy was asked about his heated exchange with Trump and Vice President JD Vance in the Oval Office in 2025, when Vance urged him to give Trump's diplomatic efforts to end the war a chance, and Zelenskyy responded that diplomacy with Russia had failed since 2014, Caliber.Az reports.

Asked what had changed to improve relations between the two leaders, Zelenskyy pointed to their meeting at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.

“Absolutely. We had first changing moment in Rome in Vatican. Yes, it was not long meeting but I always said that is, I think, historic moment because we changed the relations during 15-20 minutes. So, nobody was around us,” the Ukrainian president added.

While declining to disclose details of the conversation, he stressed that the trust established through their private dialogue had been significant.

"I am so happy because a lot of lives depends on such relations and dialogue," Zelenskyy concluded.

A portion of the interview was later shared by Trump on his Truth Social platform.

By Bakhtiyar Abbasov