The intense confrontation between American Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office in February was considered a turning point for Washington-Kyiv relations. Vance, speaking to USA Today, admitted that the clash helped reveal the real disagreements, although he expressed his annoyance that the episode became public.
“Look, sometimes people disagree,” Vance said. “I mean, did I want us to have an explosion in the Oval Office in front of the cameras? Not necessarily.” Nevertheless, he pointed out that the tension helped the American public understand the disagreements between the two sides.
Vance on Biden administration: “Provided billions to Ukraine without any goal and without real diplomacy”
The specific confrontation received widespread publicity, with Europe reacting immediately and expressing its solidarity with Zelensky. Germany, through Friedrich Merz, noted that the entire episode appeared to be a deliberate escalation from the American side. Vance’s criticisms of Zelensky mainly concerned the absence of negotiations with Russia, three years after the start of the Russian invasion.
Vance also mentioned that his real dissatisfaction was not so much with Zelensky, but with the unclear stance of the Biden administration, which, he said, “provided billions in aid to Ukraine without any clear goal and without real diplomacy.” Specifically, he emphasized that what frustrated him most was that the Biden administration had no plan for ending the war.
Now, according to Vance, the Trump administration is “fairly aligned with President Zelensky” in pursuing a peaceful agreement. “Although we have some disagreements, we naturally want to protect Ukraine’s territorial integrity,” he stated and added: “We don’t want Russia to occupy the entire country.”
