Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store said during a visit to Washington on Thursday that the United States' engagement is "critical" in moving toward the end of the war in Ukraine and thanked US President Donald Trump for having "made it possible."

Store stressed it is important to put "pressure" on both Ukraine and Russia to agree to a ceasefire, which will be followed by a more "complicated" part of ending the war altogether.

The Norwegian official insisted the war should end as soon as possible, as such a "broad" conflict is a "bad thing" for the whole of Europe.