After meeting with Trump, Zelenskyy felt that for first time he was able to change his attitude towards Putin - Axios
After meeting with the American leader in the Vatican, Volodymyr Zelenskyy felt that for the first time, he was able to at least partially change Donald Trump's opinion of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin.
Axios writes about this, citing sources, Censor.NET reports.
Trump's approach to Putin
It is noted that Zelenskyy used his 15 minutes with President Trump at the Vatican to urge him to take a tougher stance against Vladimir Putin and reconsider ceasefire priorities.
During the meeting, the Ukrainian president emphasized to Trump that Putin would not change his position without additional pressure from the United States.
In response, Trump said he may have to adjust his attitude toward Putin.
Zelenskyy also insisted that Trump return to his original proposal for an unconditional ceasefire as a starting point for peace talks, which Ukraine accepted but Russia rejected.
According to the newspaper's sources, Trump allegedly agreed to the proposal. The White House has neither confirmed nor denied this information, and Zelenskyy's spokesperson refused to comment.
The issue of Crimea
In addition, the President of Ukraine reiterated his position on Crimea - Kyiv does not recognize it as Russian territory. In response, Trump made it clear that he did not expect the Ukrainian president to do so. According to the plan under discussion, it is the United States, not Ukraine, that will recognize the peninsula as Russian.
Zelenskyy also assured Trump that he was ready to compromise to end the war, but that clear and reliable security guarantees for Ukraine were needed. During the conversation, Trump also emphasized the need to sign a bilateral agreement between the United States and Ukraine on mineral supplies as soon as possible.
According to Axios, one of the reasons why this conversation was more positive could be the absence of Vice President J.D. Vance and White House Special Representative Steve Witkoff, who are perceived in Ukraine as supporters of the pro-Russian position.
Preparing for the meeting
Axios also writes that Ukraine received "signals" before Pope Francis' funeral that Trump was ready to meet with Zelensky on the sidelines. Before the meeting, Zelenskyy's advisers feared a face-to-face conversation after the February 28 quarrel in the Oval Office of the White House, so nothing was decided in advance.
Initially, it was assumed that the leaders of Ukraine and the United States would be able to talk after the ceremony. However, the two presidents unexpectedly crossed paths on the spot and decided to have a one-on-one conversation in St. Peter's Basilica. The meeting lasted about fifteen minutes.
The next day, April 27, Zelenskyy was scheduled to give an interview to ABC, but the Ukrainian president decided to cancel it, allegedly due to technical problems with the translation. The source of the publication believes that Zelenskyy "did not want to take any risks" after a good meeting with Trump.
Earlier, it was reported that Zelenskyy and Trump had a meeting in Rome. Zelenskyy said he had a good meeting with Trump, which could be historic.
