The war in Ukraine and the existential threat that Russia poses to European security has topped NATO’s agenda in each of its summits since 2022.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has called on the US to apply more pressure on Russia to end its three-year-old war on Ukraine. “You know that we gave support to Ukraine and that we are looking for more pressure on Russia,

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.