Vance denies that Trump's Russian policy is appeasement
U.S. Vice President James David Vance has denied that the U.S. presidential administration's position on the Russian-Ukrainian war is appeasement of the aggressor.
"I'm surprised to hear you call the administration's posture 'appeasement.' We are negotiating to end the conflict. It is 'appeasement' only if you think the Ukrainians have a credible pathway to victory. They don't, so it's not," Vance said in a discussion on X social network on Friday.
He is convinced that most of those who talk about appeasement are not dealing with the reality on the ground.
The vice president also said the U.S. negotiating position would not be made public. "But we're not going to telegraph our negotiating posture to make people feel better. The president is trying to achieve a lasting piece, not massage the egos or anxieties of people waving Ukraine flags," Vance said.
He also called the idea of starting negotiations on a proposal to grant Ukraine NATO membership one that "defies all common sense." "Again, it's not appeasement to acknowledge the realities on the ground-realities President Trump has pointed to for years in some cases," the U.S. vice president said.
At the same time, he called media reports that the U.S. presidential administration has "given the Russians everything they want" fake.
"If we just passed another aid package, Ukraine would roll all the way to Moscow, raise Navalny from the dead, and install a democratic and free leader to Russia (I exaggerate, but only a little). All of these arguments are provably, demonstrably false," Vance said.
He later drew attention to the firepower advantage the parties to the conflict have. "How might that change with further NATO action, and how do you propose to change it?" Vance asked, adding that he was interested in arguing whether its basic dynamics could change in the future.