During the funeral proceedings for Pope Francis, Donald Trump made an intriguing remark to Melania.
The funeral took place earlier today, April 26, following Pope Francis’ death on April 21, drawing a massive crowd to St Peter’s Square in Vatican City to honor the departed religious figure.
Among the dignitaries attending were US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania, alongside other prominent figures such as France’s President Emmanuel Macron, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the UK’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and Prince William.
The Trumps arrived in Vatican City on Melania’s 55th birthday. During the two-hour ceremony, Trump was observed making a brief remark to Melania.
Lip reader Nicola Hickling, from Lip Reader Limited, shared with the Express through Oddspedia that Trump was seen saying, “I’ll go over and speak to him.”
Melania’s reaction, according to Hickling, was a ‘side eye’.
The identity of ‘him’ remains unclear. Given Trump’s strained relations with several world leaders due to his tariff policies, the comment could pertain to anyone.
However, speculation arose that Trump was referring to Volodymyr Zelenskyy, marking their first encounter since Trump accused the Ukrainian leader of ‘gambling with World War Three.’ Zelenskyy was seated several chairs away from Trump.
Contrary to expectations, Trump secured a front-row seat at the funeral, despite being predicted to be seated further back.
The Vatican had not disclosed seating arrangements beforehand, but reports suggested that Catholic royalty might be prioritized for front-row seats, followed by non-Catholic royals like Prince William.
World leaders were expected to be seated according to the French alphabetical order of their countries, which would have placed Trump further back.
MSNBC noted the Holy See press office’s statement that Trump would likely sit between Estonia’s and Finland’s leaders. However, Cardinal Vincent Nichols mentioned that seating arrangements also considered ‘big egos’.
Despite etiquette criticisms, Trump ended up in the front row, being described by some as a ‘disgrace to the US’.
Did Trump eventually speak to Zelenskyy?
Yes, they conversed before the funeral and reportedly had a ‘very productive discussion,’ agreeing to continue talks later.