It’s easier to pause conflicts than resolve them. Absent decisive military outcomes, ceasefires like the latest Mideast ones have simply given Israel’s enemies the opportunity to regroup, rearm, and resume hostilities at will.

The lesson has not been lost on Ukraine. President Trump understandably seeks to stop the carnage there. So, he fashioned a deal with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy designed to achieve a ceasefire without explicitly committing the United States to providing security guarantees the Ukrainians seek in case the Russians subsequently restart the war.

Despite the spectacular miscarriage of the White House meeting last Friday where the minerals deal was supposed to be inked, it remains the best hope for translating a temporary suspension of hostilities into an actual peace that will require an end to Russian dictator Vladimir Putin’s territorial ambitions, however, not just Ukraine’s efforts to resist them.

This is Frank Gaffney.