US Vice President J.D. Vance: Ukraine deal will shock the world

US Vice President J.D. Vance warned Russia of potential consequences if it refuses a peaceful resolution to the Ukraine conflict. According to him, the option of using "economic and military" pressure remains on the table. His remarks suggest that Washington is considering a scenario in which US troops could be deployed to Ukrainian territory.

However, Vance also emphasized that the administration of US President Donald Trump wanted to convince Russian President Vladimir Putin that Moscow could achieve more at the negotiating table than on the battlefield.

Vance noted that it was too early to discuss security guarantees for Ukraine or specific territorial changes. The outcome will depend on the progress of peace talks.

“There are many formulations, configurations,” he stated, adding that the US is “concerned about Ukraine’s sovereign independence."

"I think a deal will emerge that will shock a lot of people (...) He [Trump] will say: ‘Everything is on the table, let’s negotiate,'" Vice President of the US J.D. Vance said.

More of what J.D. Vance said: 

• It is still too early to say which part of Ukrainian territory will remain under Russian control;
• It is also too soon to determine what security guarantees Washington and its Western allies might offer Kyiv;
• The Trump administration aims to convince Putin that Russia can achieve more at the negotiating table than on the battlefield.
• Moscow’s current isolation from Western markets has made it a junior partner to Beijing.
• It is not in Putin’s interest to be the junior partner in an alliance with China.

During a press conference following his meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Trump also said it was premature to discuss territorial concessions.

“As for negotiations, it’s too early to say what will happen. Maybe Russia will concede a lot, maybe not—it all depends on what unfolds,” he stated.

Meanwhile, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called Ukraine’s demand to return to its 2014 borders unrealistic.

“The US does not believe that returning Ukraine to its pre-2014 borders is realistic,” he said, adding that the Trump administration does not see Ukraine’s NATO membership as part of the peace plan.

WSJ Accuses Trump of Sidelining Kyiv from Peace Talks

The The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) claimed that Trump was effectively excluding Kyiv both as a direct party to the negotiations and as a partner. This conclusion was drawn after Trump’s calls with both the Russian and Ukrainian presidents.

The publication highlighted that Trump is handling negotiations with Putin and Russia differently than with other partners—offering concessions to the Russian leader "without getting anything in return" and only informing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky afterward.

Kremlin Responds to Moscow’s Readiness for Talks

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov reiterated Russia’s readiness to engage in negotiations to resolve the Ukraine conflict. He emphasized that Russia had repeatedly stated its willingness to pursue peace through political and diplomatic means.

"Putin has repeatedly expressed our readiness to engage in peace negotiations and achieve our objectives precisely through political and diplomatic means," Dmitry Peskov, Press Secretary for the Russian President said. 

Peskov added that this position was reaffirmed during the phone conversation between Russian and US presidents.

Details

James David Vance (born James Donald Bowman; August 2, 1984) is an American politician, author, attorney, and Marine Corps veteran serving as the 50th vice president of the United States since 2025 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party, he represented Ohio in the U.S. Senate from 2023 to 2025. After high school, Vance joined the Marine Corps, where he served as a military journalist from 2003 to 2007, and was deployed to the Iraq War for six months in 2005. He graduated from Ohio State University with a bachelor's degree in 2009 and Yale Law School with a law degree in 2013. He practiced briefly as a corporate lawyer before embarking on a career in the tech industry as a venture capitalist. His memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, was published in 2016 and adapted into a film in 2020.