The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the president of the European Council, Antonio Costa, will also be present. While tensions will no doubt bubble beneath the surface, Vatican diplomacy expert Victor Gaetan believes the gathering of world leaders will likely be no more than “a photo op.”
The body of Pope Francis is carried through St. Peter’s Square to St. Peter’s Basilica at the Vatican, April 23, 2025, where he will lie in state for three days. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
“There will not be a substantial conversation between Trump and the European leaders,” said Gaetan, author of the 2021 book “God’s Diplomats: Pope Francis, Vatican Diplomacy and America’s Armageddon.” Instead, he added, the funeral will showcase the breadth of Pope Francis’ influence among the world’s governments and religions.
Christian, Muslim, Jewish and Orthodox leaders will also be at the funeral of Pope Francis, who often put an emphasis on ecumenism and interreligious dialogue as a means to peace. Gaetan underlined how the Vatican’s diplomacy efforts toward the Russian Orthodox Church in Moscow led to Francis becoming the first pope to meet with Patriarch Kirill of Moscow in Havana, where they signed a joint declaration for peace in 2016. Francis later signed documents on human fraternity with Sunni and Shiite Muslim leaders in an attempt to promote tolerance and coexistence among members of different faiths.
South American leaders, including Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and Argentine President Javier Milei, also said they will attend. Prince William of Wales will be coming to the Vatican instead of King Charles, and other royals will be in attendance, including King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium, and King Felipe and Queen Letizia of Spain.
“Pope Francis has been a symbol of unity, peace and mercy and many politicians at least want to seem that they embrace the same values — even though their tangible actions are often quite different,” said Mathew Schmalz, a scholar on global Catholicism and a professor of religious studies at College of the Holy Cross.
“I think, given the divisiveness of the international scene, the contrast will be evident,” he added.
This article originally appeared here.
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