May 18 (UPI) -- Against the backdrop of Pope Leo XIV's first papal mass Sunday, Vice President JD Vance met privately with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky about achieving a stand down in the war that has waged since Russia's 2023 invasion of Ukraine.
It's the first face to face meeting between the two leaders since the infamous February meeting in the Oval Office that erupted into verbal attacks, finger pointing and taunts by President Donald Trump.
The meeting between Vance and Zelenksy was overshadowed by Moscow's large scale drone attack on Ukraine just hours prior. There are also reports that Russia may be planning a nuclear attack as it ramps up efforts to intimidate Kyiv and its allies.
Zelensky called the meeting "good," and posted photos of smiling Ukrainian and U.S. officials gathered around an outside table.
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