It’s a fool’s game trying to understand the president’s true motives, but do our misgivings matter if the outcome is a speedy end to war?

Donald Trump is sensible and he is right. Basking in glory after his Gaza ceasefire, he was on Friday evening flying to Florida with his entourage of reporters. The drums of war were beating across Europe and Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, had pleaded with him for Tomahawk missiles. What was his reply?

Trump was clearly fed up. He had told Zelenskyy: go make a deal. He had said, “They should stop the war immediately. You go go by the battle line wherever it is … and both sides should go home. Go to their families, stop the killing and that should be it.” Matter closed. Tomahawks would merely mean escalation and more killing. Get a deal.

Simon Jenkins is a Guardian columnist