Prince William's role in Pope funeral talks between Trump and Zelensky
Prince William played a key role in setting up the meeting between
Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelensky
and world leaders
Donald Trump
, Keir Starmer, and Emmanuel Macron, it has been revealed.
The sit down between Zelenksy and Trump was the first face-to-face meeting
since their dramatic blow up in the White House in February
.
But the seemingly friendly meeting went well. Zelensky described it as a "good meeting that has the potential to become historic," while
the White House described it as "very productive."
The Prince of Wales attended Saturday's ceremony at the Vatican. He is now being praised for a subtle move that helped pave the way for subsequent discussions between Mr. Trump and Mr. Zelensky.
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Trump wore a blue suit to the funeral which raised some eyebrows
(Image: Philip Coburn/Daily Mirror)
The heir-apparent's participation in Saturday's event included walking alongside Starmer in St Peter's Basilica in Rome for the service. However, he crucially chose to discreetly step aside from a huddle that formed between the political leaders including not only Sir Keir, Mr. Trump, and Mr. Zelensky but also France's president Mr. Macron.
William "respectfully peeled away" to allow the PM and his colleagues to continue their talks, which were then followed by the sit-down between Mr. Trump and Mr. Zelensky, the Telegraph reports.
The Prince of Wales is reported to have "read the room" and moved away.
Photograph taken and released by the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry on April 26, 2025, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky (R) meets with US President Donald Trump (L)
(Image: UKRAINIAN FOREIGN MINISTRY/AFP v)
Following the meeting between the Ukrainian President and Trump, White House communications director Steven Cheung later stated: 'President Trump and President Zelensky met privately today and had a very productive discussion. '.
William attending the Vatican, comes after his father Charles attended Pope John Paul II's funeral in 2005, representing his mother, the late Queen. Many see William's visit as him stepping into the global spotlight in preparation to become king one day.
Writing on X, formerly known as Twitter, Mr Zelensky said of last Saturday's talks with Mr Trump: "Good meeting. We discussed a lot one on one.
Prince William sat a few rows back
(Image: Philip Coburn/Daily Mirror)
"Hoping for results on everything we covered. Protecting lives of our people. Full and unconditional ceasefire. Reliable and lasting peace that will prevent another war from breaking out. Very symbolic meeting that has potential to become historic, if we achieve joint results. Thank you."
The thank you carries extra weight after an apparent lack of gratitude became a key point of attack for Trump and his cabinet during the White House argument.
Although there were rumors the two would meet again after the Pope's funeral, it didn't happen.
Since then, Trump has expressed his belief that Ukrainian President Zelensky is prepared to give up Crimea in order to negotiate peace terms with Russia.
Speaking to reporters in
New Jersey
yesterday, he agreed when asked if he thought Zelensky was ready to "give up" the territory.
Trump mentioned that during their conversation at St. Peter's Basilica, they had "briefly" discussed the future of the Black Sea peninsula, which was invaded by Vladimir Putin's Russia in 2014.
He also urged President Putin to "stop shooting" and sign an agreement to end the ongoing war following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Last Sunday, he said about Putin: "I want him to stop shooting, sit down, and sign a deal. We have the confines of a deal, I believe, and I want him to sign it."
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