J.D. Vance, Vice President of the United States
According to Vance, for the first time in three and a half years, Russia made significant concessions: “They were actually willing to be flexible on some of their basic demands. I’m not saying they agreed to everything. But what they have agreed to is an acknowledgement that Ukraine will retain its territorial integrity after the war.”
The US Vice President noted that Trump has stepped up efforts to resolve the conflict diplomatically because it is not in anyone’s interest. “Whatever the outcome – whether this war ends in three months or six months, hopefully no later – we should be proud that we have a president who is trying to stop the killing,” Vance said.
He promised that the U.S. will continue negotiations, and if they reach an impasse, Washington will apply leverage. As an example, in addition to sanctions against Russia, Vance recalled the use of “aggressive economic leverage” – imposing 25 percent duties on goods from India to try to make it harder for the Russians to enrich themselves with their oil economy.
“We will continue to do what we have to do to see this through. I don’t think it’s going to happen overnight. I think we will continue to make progress. But ultimately, whether the killing stops will determine whether the Russians and Ukrainians can really find a middle ground here,” says the U.S. vice president.
He rejected the idea that US troops would be stationed in Ukraine as part of security guarantees, as Trump himself has previously done. However, the US will continue to play an active role in trying to provide security guarantees to the Ukrainians.
As for Russia’s involvement in Ukraine’s security guarantees, Vance believes that there is disagreement on this issue, but Moscow will be involved in discussions on ending the conflict. The US vice-president noted that there is no talk about security guarantees until the fighting is over.
