But halting progress, ever-more deadly drone attacks and unmoving negotiating positions seem to have taken their toll. On Thursday, Trump used a striking analogy to concede the warfare was nowhere near over, and that he did not, at that moment, feel it was best to intervene.

Trump used the analogy in an Oval Office meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, saying that it was sometimes better to let children fight for a while before pulling them a

President Donald Trump, after repeatedly promising to quickly end Russia's war on Ukraine, has changed his tune and his attitude dramatically.

In response, Merz says the leaders agree on "how terrible" the war is and they are "both looking for ways to stop it very soon". He says he told Trump that he is the "key person in the world" that can enable the end of the war, by putting further pressure on Russia.

President Donald Trump raised eyebrows Thursday with a remark to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz during an Oval Office discussion about seeking to end Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine. Merz referenced the anniversary of D-Day,

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz successfully navigated a 40-minute meeting with Donald Trump in the Oval Office without falling victim to the public humiliation the American president has doled out to other leaders — even though both Germany and Europe are two of Trump’s perpetual irritants.