U.S. Vice President JD Vance on April 15 pushed back against criticism from President Volodymyr Zelensky, saying it was "absurd" to accuse Washington of siding with Russia, Reuters reported.
"I think it's sort of absurd for Zelensky to tell the (American) government, which is currently keeping his entire government and war effort together, that we are somehow on the side of the Russians," Vance said.
The remarks followed an interview with CBS News, in which Zelensky condemned Vance for echoing Kremlin rhetoric and accused the U.S. vice president of trying to justify Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
"It's a shift in tone, a shift in reality... and I don't want to engage in the altered reality that is being presented to me," Zelensky said, referencing the Feb. 28 Oval Office meeting where tensions between the two leaders spilled into public view.
During that meeting, Zelensky challenged Vance to visit Ukraine and witness firsthand the destruction caused by Russia's full-scale invasion. Vance declined, claiming the Ukrainian government orchestrates "propaganda tours" to shape Western narratives about the war.
Vance, a leading voice in the Trump administration's "America First" foreign policy, has long opposed U.S. military aid to Ukraine. He has argued that such support burdens American taxpayers and distracts from domestic priorities.
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in 2022, Vance has drawn criticism for downplaying the war's significance and repeating Kremlin-aligned talking points.
Shortly after the invasion began, he said he "doesn't care about Ukraine," a statement he has since defended on the grounds of prioritizing U.S. interests.
"That doesn't mean you morally support the Russian cause, or that you support the full-scale invasion," Vance said.
"But you do have to try to understand what are their strategic red lines, in the same way that you have to try to understand what the Ukrainians are trying to get out of the conflict."
Zelensky has repeatedly warned that Moscow's goal is not negotiation but conquest, and that Ukraine's survival depends on the West continuing to provide military, financial, and political support.
Tim Zadorozhnyy
(Updated: )
