Vice President JD Vance, shown here at Youngstown Air Reserve Station, Ohio, in early February, said Thursday that military deployments are an option if Russia does not negotiate an end to its war with Ukraine. (Eric White/U.S. Air Force)
U.S. troops on the ground in Ukraine are a consideration if Russia refuses to negotiate an end to the war, Vice President JD Vance said ahead of high-level security talks in Munich on Friday.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal on Thursday, Vance said a deployment of American forces to Ukraine could be “on the table” along with more severe sanctions on Moscow in the event a peace deal doesn’t ensure Ukraine’s long-term security.
“There are economic tools of leverage; there are of course military tools of leverage,” Vance told the Journal.
Vance’s comments came before his anticipated meeting Friday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Munich, where global leaders are gathering for a three-day security conference.
Earlier this week, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said it’s unrealistic for Ukraine to return to its prewar borders as part of a peace deal. He also dismissed the idea of NATO membership for Ukraine and ruled out U.S. troops on the ground in Ukraine as part of a potential international force responsible for keeping the peace.
Hegseth’s comments rattled some allies and prompted criticism that the U.S. weakened its position by taking things off the negotiating table before the start of any formal talks.
Hegseth on Thursday, at the end of a two-day visit to NATO headquarters in Brussels, appeared to walk back some of his statements.
“These negotiations are led by President (Donald) Trump. Everything is on the table in his conversations with Vladimir Putin and Zelenskyy,” Hegseth said. “What he decides to allow or not allow is at the purview of the leader of the free world of President Trump.”
Vance, meanwhile, said he’s confident Trump would reach an agreement that will bring Russia’s war in Ukraine to an end.
“I think there is a deal that is going to come out of this that’s going to shock a lot of people,” Vance said.
During his speech at the Munich Security Conference on Friday, Vance touched only briefly upon the war in Ukraine and efforts to reach a peace deal.
Instead, he took allies in Europe to task over migration, free speech and the status of parties considered to be on the far-right of the political spectrum. He cited a recent election in Romania that was overturned by its constitutional court over suspected Russian election meddling as an example.
“If you are running in fear of your own voters, there is nothing America can do for you,’’ Vance said.
