The Pope used a speech in Metz, France, to call for courage in the negotiations over peace in Europe. He asked those at the table to be ready to give up certain positions for the greater good, which he defined as peace itself. His remarks came with a bleak reading of the continent's condition, one where war has returned even to European soil. He described the fighting as a new senseless massacre that kills large numbers of civilians every day. The message was aimed squarely at the people doing the bargaining, urging them not to lose nerve. He framed compromise as a price worth paying to stop the bloodshed. By his telling, the human cost outweighs any advantage a side might cling to at the negotiating table.