President Trump said Thursday he thinks China can help to end the Russia-Ukraine war because of Beijing’s economic influence over Moscow.

“Russia supplies a lot of energy to China. China pays them a lot of money for that, and I think they have a lot of power over Russia,” Mr. Trump told reporters Thursday.

“I think from what I hear, [Russian President Vladimir] Putin would like to see me, meet as soon as we can. I’d meet immediately,” the president said. “Every day we don’t meet, soldiers are being killed in a battlefield and that battlefield is like no battlefield since World War II.”

“It’d be nice to end that war,” he said. “It’s a ridiculous war.”

He said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is “ready to negotiate a deal, they’d like to stop.”

Before the election, Mr. Trump repeatedly said he could end the war on Day One of his administration, but he has backed off a specific timetable. 

• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.