The seating arrangement follows a strict protocol based on the dignitary’s rank and the alphabetical order of their countries.

On Saturday, Presidents Donald Trump (U.S.), Emmanuel Macron (France), and Volodymyr Zelensky (Ukraine) sat in the front row at Pope Francis’s funeral in St. Peter’s Square.

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Just before the funeral rites began, Trump briefly shook hands with the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.

The seating arrangement in the Vatican esplanade is not random but follows a strict protocol based on the dignitary’s rank and the alphabetical order of their countries in French.

Trump, accompanied by First Lady Melania, was seated at the beginning of one of the benches in the first row, and on the bench immediately next to his, separated by an aisle, were the President of Finland, Alexander Stubb, and next to him, Emmanuel Macron.

However, the arrangement in St. Peter’s Square also placed Zelensky, dressed entirely in black, in the front row, despite Ukraine being far from the United States alphabetically.

Previously, officials in Kyiv confirmed that Zelensky and Trump had met in Rome as Washington seeks to achieve a negotiated resolution to the Russian invasion. During the sign of peace at the Mass, Trump and Macron were seen shaking hands.

Meanwhile, two seats to the left of Melania Trump were King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia of Spain, who are leading the Spanish delegation.

Pope Francis is being laid to rest with a funeral that, besides numerous authorities, has gathered at least 140,000 faithful in St. Peter’s Square and the surrounding Vatican areas.

Afterward, his casket will be transported to the Roman Basilica of Saint Mary Major for burial, as the Argentine pontiff had arranged during his lifetime.

teleSUR/ JF

Source: EFE

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