Today at 20:01
U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance said that the war between Russia and Ukraine continues despite months of negotiations, as neither side is currently prepared to sign a peace agreement.
Vance made the remarks in an interview with Newsmax.
“No matter how hard the U.S. president works on diplomacy to bring both sides to the finish line, in the end it takes the will of both sides to reach an agreement. And right now, despite all our efforts — and we will keep working on this — the Russians and Ukrainians are simply not ready to make a deal,” Vance said.
He added that a peaceful resolution remains possible but “requires much more work.” According to him, the main obstacle is a “fundamental mismatch of expectations,” since the Russians believe they are in a stronger battlefield position than they actually are.
The vice president also said that President Trump’s foreign policy approach has advanced negotiations further than previous administrations had managed. In his view, “energetic diplomacy that empowers people on the ground and allows for unconventional solutions” is more effective.
Speaking about economic pressure tools, Vance noted that the Trump administration views tariffs as more effective than sanctions. He stressed that sanctions have failed to deliver desired results for decades, while tariffs could serve as a more practical way to influence Russia’s behavior.
Vance also said that Trump is in talks with India and China to reduce their purchases of Russian oil and cut Moscow’s energy export revenues.
According to the vice president, the U.S. president sometimes loses patience with those involved in the process, but “as long as he keeps working on it, he’s confident he can strike a deal.”
“I believe he will succeed. The only question is how long it will take,” Vance added.
U.S. and Russian leaders held their first conversation in nearly two months on October 16. Following the call, Donald Trump said another meeting would be held — this time in Budapest.
On October 17, President Trump is scheduled to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Washington, where one of the key topics will be the possible transfer of long-range Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine.
Trump also said that now is not the best time to impose new sanctions on Russia, as doing so could complicate or derail the planned meeting with Russian ruler Vladimir Putin.
