A two-hour-plus call was an eyebrow-raising shift in both substance and tone from Donald Trump: there was no demand for Vladimir Putin to sign onto an immediate cease-fire. And the White House was pulling back from its efforts to halt the fighting.

President Trump said he didn’t bring up his Easter plea to halt attacks on Ukraine during a phone call Monday with Russian President Vladimir Putin. In a post on Truth Social at the time, Trump

Following a two-hour phone call with Vladimir Putin on Monday, May 19th, President Trump announced that terms for ending the Ukraine war must be negotiated directly between Russia and Ukraine, suggesting the Vatican as a potential host.