US Vice President JD Vance has broken down what happened during the Oval Office showdown last week, slamming Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy over his "unwillingness to engage in the peace process."
Speaking to Fox News anchor Sean Hannity on Monday night, Vance said his comment about engaging Russian President Vladimir Putin diplomatically set Zelenskyy off.
During the Oval Office meeting, Zelenskyy said Ukraine had negotiated with Putin from 2014 to 2022 and that both the sides signed a deal. However, he added that Putin broke the deal and did not release prisoners as agreed. "What kind of diplomacy, JD, are you speaking about?" Zelenskyy asked Vance.
In reply, the VP said, "I'm talking about the kind of diplomacy that's going to end the destruction of your country."
When the Ukrainian leader said, "Yes, but if you...", he was interrupted by Vance.
The veep then said, "Mr President, with respect, I think it's disrespectful for you to come to the Oval Office and try to litigate this in front of the American media. Right now, you guys are going around and forcing conscripts to the frontlines because you have manpower problems. You should be thanking the president."
Talking to Fox News, Vance said he does not really care about what the Ukrainian leader says about him or others but pointed out that he was disappointed about Zelenskyy not being ready to participate in the peace process. However, the US leader said he expects Zelenskyy will eventually agree to a peace deal.
The US vice president said the meeting was supposed to be a "rah rah" moment for the two sides and Washington wanted Ukraine to get into tough negotiations later. However, he admitted that "it went off the rails", adding that Trump is still ready to resume the talks.
Vance blamed European leaders for "puffing up" Zelenskyy by calling him a freedom fighter who should keep fighting forever. "Well, fighting forever with what? With whose money? With whose ammunition? and with whose lives?" he asked.
Vance then went on to say that Trump's way is the only realistic option to end the war. "We encourage both President Zelenskyy and President Putin to follow that path," the veep added.
