A calendar event sent by the Vatican to the media indicated a half-hour meeting between the pontiff and Ukrainian leader ROME: Pope Francis will meet Volodymyr Zelensky on Friday at the Vatican, officials said, while media reported the Ukrainian leader would also meet Italy’s prime minister in Rome. A calendar event sent by the Vatican to the media indicated a half-hour meeting between the pope and Zelensky beginning at 9:30 a.m. (0730 GMT) on Friday at the Vatican. Italian media reported that Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni would be meeting with the Ukranian president Thursday evening, although nothing has been officially confirmed. Zelensky was in Croatia on Wednesday at a summit with Balkan leaders to seek international military support. He had been due to attend an international meeting on UKraine at a US air base in Germany on Saturday. But that meeting of more than 50 countries was pushed back Wednesday after President Joe Biden called off a planned state visit to Germany and Angola due to Hurrican Milton.