The recent meeting between Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky at Pope Francis’s funeral is a strong indication of the serious diplomatic efforts underway to bring an end to the war in Ukraine, Foreign Secretary David Lammy has said.
The two presidents were pictured in close discussion at the Vatican over the weekend, having both travelled to Rome to attend the funeral service. It was their first public engagement since a tense White House meeting earlier this year, where discussions over future US support for Ukraine reportedly turned sour.
Speaking to the House of Lords International Relations and Defence Committee on Wednesday, Mr Lammy stated that the encounter was “indicative” of the diplomatic momentum being built, not just by Ukraine and the US, but also by other European partners.
“There’s no doubt about it, our Prime Minister alongside Emmanuel Macron has done a lot of the heavy lifting in the coalition of the willing,” Mr Lammy said, responding to a question from crossbench peer Lord Darroch on the likelihood of a ceasefire. “I think you saw that in the NATO meeting of foreign ministers, in which (US Secretary of State) Marco Rubio recommitted the United States to NATO, which was very important.”
Mr Lammy went on to highlight the importance of continued international unity. “We see nations coming together and committing not just to Ukraine’s security, but also to the broader security of Europe,” he said. “All attempts are going in to get the ceasefire.”
The funeral meeting in Rome comes as Ukrainian officials prepared to sign a critical minerals agreement with the United States, in what is being described as a major step towards securing long-term economic support from Washington. Late on Wednesday evening, the US Treasury unveiled plans for a “Reconstruction Investment Fund” for Ukraine. Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal welcomed the agreement as “truly an equal and good international deal.”
The deal is widely believed to grant the United States access to Ukraine’s rare earth mineral reserves in exchange for further security and economic assistance. This aligns with Mr Trump’s longstanding demand that the US should benefit from any future agreements, particularly given the substantial military aid it has provided to Kyiv since the beginning of Russia’s invasion.
Speaking on TruthSocial shortly after the Vatican encounter, Mr Trump appeared to shift his tone on Russian President Vladimir Putin, stating that the Russian leader might be “just tapping me along” – a comment many analysts have interpreted as a sign of growing impatience with Moscow’s approach.
Mr Lammy, reflecting on the diplomatic developments, noted that considerable effort had gone into building consensus behind the scenes. “The images from the basilica at the Pope’s funeral are symbolic,” he said. “Because of a lot of our effort — and indeed, this time last week I was with the Ukrainians, the Germans, and the French — we ensured we were aligned and coordinated, which then fed into the American system.”
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Mr Zelensky also met Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer on Saturday, and was later seen speaking separately with Mr Trump and President Macron, fuelling speculation of a coordinated diplomatic push by Western allies to reignite stalled peace talks.
While the technical details of the minerals agreement are still being finalised, Ukrainian Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko is understood to be in Washington to coordinate the final terms. However, it remains unclear whether the US administration is fully ready to sign off on the deal.
Talks had previously broken down after the February Oval Office meeting, during which Mr Trump reportedly insisted on access to Ukraine’s mineral wealth as a condition of further support. Kyiv views the agreement as a crucial step to unlock continued US backing, which remains vital to Ukraine’s resistance against Russian aggression.
As pressure mounts for a ceasefire, the weekend’s images from Rome may come to symbolise a turning point — a moment when diplomacy took centre stage in the struggle for peace in Eastern Europe.
