U.S. Vice President JD Vance recently dismissed claims that Moscow is intentionally delaying a potential peace deal regarding the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. In a pre-recorded interview that aired on Sunday, Vance emphasized that Russia has made “significant concessions” to former President Donald Trump regarding the terms for ending the war.
Vance asserted that Trump, who had a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this month during an Alaska summit, has been engaged in “very aggressive, very energetic diplomacy” aimed at finding a compromise solution to halt the ongoing violence in Ukraine. Trump has advocated for a bilateral meeting between the presidents of Ukraine and Russia, but both nations have accused each other of obstructing the talks.
During the interview on NBC's “Meet the Press with Kristen Welker,” Vance stated, “I think the Russians have made significant concessions to President Trump for the first time in three and a half years of this conflict.” He highlighted that Russia has demonstrated flexibility on some of its core demands, including recognizing Ukraine’s territorial integrity post-war. However, Vance did not clarify whether Ukraine would retain its pre-invasion borders.
Furthermore, Vance noted that Russia has acknowledged that it will not be able to install a “puppet regime” in Kyiv. While he acknowledged that not every concession has been made, he expressed optimism about the progress being made in the negotiations.
Vance reiterated that Washington will maintain an active role in providing security guarantees to Ukraine, while also making it clear that “there are not going to be boots on the ground in Ukraine.” This statement underscores the U.S. government's stance on direct military involvement in the conflict.
On the same episode of “Meet the Press,” U.S. Senator Adam Schiff from California, a prominent critic of Trump, labeled the Trump-Putin summit a failure. He argued that the Russian leader walked away without any commitments to a ceasefire and faced a diminished threat of sanctions. Schiff remarked that the peace talks appear to have “stalled,” criticizing Russia’s recent bombing of a U.S.-owned factory in Ukraine as a provocative action against Trump, who expressed mild dissatisfaction regarding the incident.
During the same broadcast, Sergei Lavrov, the Russian Foreign Minister, responded to the criticisms, suggesting that some observers are “really naive” to believe that the attacked factory was not involved in Ukraine's military efforts. His comments reflect the complex dynamics surrounding the ongoing conflict and the challenges in achieving a lasting peace agreement.
