Russia's disrespect of Trump 'makes Putin look like a jerk,' JD Vance's soldier cousin says

After fighting for almost three years in Ukraine, Nate Vance, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and cousin of U.S. Vice President JD Vance, has some strong opinions about the ongoing, but faltering peace process.

"(Russian President) Vladimir Putin is just openly disrespectful to (U.S. President Donald Trump). It doesn't make the (U.S.) president look foolish, it just makes Vladimir Putin look like a jerk," he told the Kyiv Independent on the sidelines of the Warsaw Security Forum on Sept. 30.

Vance traveled to Ukraine in March 2022, weeks after Russia launched its full-scale war. He initially came to deliver humanitarian aid but soon joined the Ukrainian military.

Over three years, he fought in some of the fiercest battles of the war as part of the Da Vinci Wolves battalion.

The interview came as Moscow persists in obstructing Trump's peace process, including rejecting a ceasefire and refusing to engage in meaningful negotiations.

Vance said he believes the U.S. president is sincere in trying to end the war, but Putin showed contempt during their three-hour meeting in Alaska on Aug. 15.

"I think (Trump) is an honest broker when he says he wants this (war) to end," Vance said. "And that invitation to Putin was an honest attempt to try to work towards that."

"I think Putin was very disrespectful to that attempt to try to find a solution to this."

When asked how it felt to see Putin — a wanted war criminal — set foot in the U.S., Vance said he understood Trump's reasoning.

"I know a lot of people were upset by that, and that it's one of those unfortunate things… if President Trump is going to be a mediator, he has to speak to Vladimir Putin… even if we — and especially Ukrainians — find it vile and horrible," he said.

On Sept. 23, Trump unexpectedly shifted tone after meeting President Volodymyr Zelensky, saying Ukraine was "in a position to fight and win all of Ukraine back."

"Russia has been fighting aimlessly for three and a half years," Trump said. "This does not distinguish Russia; in fact, it very much makes them look like ‘a paper tiger.'"

The remarks contrasted with his earlier pledges to mediate a deal along the current front line which see Ukraine ceding territory to Russia.

Vance said the change surprised him, but he welcomed the message.

"Well, I was surprised to hear it," he said. "I agree that it's possible. It's possible, but that does not mean that there is not a lot of hard work involved in doing that.

"I'm glad those kind of things are being said, and are at least being considered by the White House."

When asked if supporting Ukraine should be aligned with Trump's "America First" policy, since it directly shields its European allies from Russia's aggressive stance, Vance said his answer was straightforward as someone who had fought for Ukraine.

"I mean, it's pretty obvious that's how I feel, right? But, you know, that's my personal opinion on the issue," he said. "And I could be wrong, but I think the administration understands that."

While JD Vance warned in May that Washington could walk away from talks if Russia showed no progress, Nate Vance doubted the administration would ever abandon Ukraine.

"I have my reasons for (thinking) that, which I won't go into detail about, but I just don't believe they're willing to walk away from the issue and let it happen," he said.

"Europe is important to the United States — whether or not that's openly admitted, it is. And I think they're smart enough to realize that. So, no, I don't think they'll walk away."

Despite U.S. mediation efforts, Vance said he does not believe Putin intends to stop the war, adding that Putin's goal remains the full occupation of Ukraine.

"I don't think they're capable at the moment, but I think if (Putin) could, that's what he would do," he said. "If logic were the driving factor of whether or not he continued or ended, he would have ended a long time ago. So it's not logic-based.

"It's something deeper than that, his fixation with history. And I think he feels like Russia's been disrespected long enough, and now he has this kind of mandate to build back the Soviet Union and get the band back together."

The interview also came as Russia escalated provocations against NATO members.

On Sept. 19, three Russian MiG-31 jets entered Estonian airspace over the Gulf of Finland, prompting Tallinn to request NATO consultations under Article 4.

Days earlier, Poland shot down Russian drones that violated its airspace during a mass strike on Ukraine, marking the first time NATO engaged Russian assets directly over its territory.

Romania scrambled F-16s on Sept. 13 after a Russian drone violated its airspace, and NATO Eurofighters intercepted a Russian Il-20M reconnaissance plane flying without a flight plan over the Baltic on Sept. 21.

Vance said such provocations are aimed at undermining the alliance.

"One of the theories that I've heard, and I tend to agree with it, is that what he's trying to do is to get an individual NATO country to respond unilaterally to some provocation and therefore fracture the NATO alliance," he said.

"Because if one country says there's an Article 5 thing and the rest of them don't agree,  that kind of eliminates the NATO thing."

Vance also stressed that Moscow poses a real threat to Europe.

"They're right next door, right? The U.S.'s advantage with dealing with Russia is that Russia cannot kinetically reach the U.S. unless it's something like an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM), which would mean the end of Russia anyway.

"But in terms of conventional weapons, Russia can reach Europe. So they do pose a physical threat to them."