Vice President JD Vance mentioned Sunday that Russia has made “important concessions” in talks to finish its struggle with Ukraine however did not rule out imposing extra sanctions to stress the Kremlin towards peace.
In an interview aired Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Vance was requested if Russia is stringing President Donald Trump alongside, Vance mentioned no and mentioned the Russians have been “versatile” on a few of its calls for.
“I feel the Russians have made important concessions to President Trump for the primary time in 3 1/2 years of this battle. They’ve really been keen to be versatile on a few of their core calls for. They’ve talked about what could be crucial to finish the struggle,” he mentioned. “In fact, they have not been fully there but, or the struggle could be over. However we’re participating on this diplomatic course of in good religion.”
“We generally really feel like we have made nice progress with the Russians, and generally, because the president has mentioned, he is been very pissed off with the Russians,” Vance continued.
President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance communicate after asserting the 2026 FIFA World Cup draw might be held on the Kennedy Middle in December 2025, within the Oval Workplace of the White Home in Washington, August 22, 2025.
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The vp was pressed on why he believes Russia desires to pursue peace on condition that it has rejected the ceasefire proposal that Trump put ahead and that there is no deliberate assembly between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
“Properly, I did not say they conceded on all the things,” he replied. “However what they’ve conceded is the popularity that Ukraine may have territorial integrity after the struggle. They’ve acknowledged that they don’t seem to be going to have the ability to set up a puppet regime in Kyiv. That was, in fact, a significant demand initially. And importantly, they’ve acknowledged that there’s going to be some safety assure to the territorial integrity of Ukraine.”
Vance informed NBC that extra sanctions towards Russia are doable, however these selections could be made on a case-by-case foundation.
“No, sanctions aren’t off the desk. However we’ll make these determinations on a case-by-case foundation. What do we expect is definitely going to exert the correct of leverage to convey the Russians to the desk,” Vance mentioned.
In a separate interview taped Friday and aired Sunday on “Meet the Press,” Russian Overseas Minister Sergey Lavrov was requested what he would say to U.S. lawmakers who’ve accused Russia of stringing Trump alongside, Lavrov mentioned that Russia respects the U.S. president.
“It’s not for the lawmakers or for any media outlet to, to determine, you already know, what President Trump is motivated by — we respect President Trump as a result of President Trump defends American nationwide pursuits,” Lavrov mentioned.
The Russian international minister mentioned it’s European leaders who met with Trump and Zelenskyy final week in Washington and never Putin which can be an obstacle to getting a peace settlement.
“And I’ve motive to imagine that President Trump respects President Putin as a result of he defends Russian nationwide pursuits,” he added. “And no matter they talk about between themselves isn’t a secret. We wish peace in Ukraine. He desires, President Trump desires, peace in Ukraine. The response to Anchorage assembly, the gathering in Washington of those European representatives and what they had been doing after Washington signifies that they do not need peace.”
Lavrov informed NBC there is no such thing as a scheduled assembly between Putin and Zelenskyy as Trump has pushed for, saying that there must be an agenda first earlier than something is finalized.
Zelenskyy mentioned Friday there might be no assembly between the presidents as a result of Russia would not need to finish the struggle.
Russia’s Overseas Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a joint press convention with India’s Overseas Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar following their talks at Zinaida Morozova’s Mansion in Moscow, Russia August 21, 2025.
Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool by way of Reuters
“The difficulty is not only the assembly. The difficulty is that they do not need to finish the struggle,” he mentioned. “A bilateral assembly is without doubt one of the elements of tips on how to finish the struggle. It isn’t all, it is one of many elements. And since they do not need to finish it, they are going to search for area for it. And this area must be lowered. America and Europe in unity scale back this area for struggle.”
U.S. and European protection officers have mentioned safety assurances for Ukraine to stop additional Russian aggression, however few particulars have been emerged.
NATO Secretary-Basic Mark Rutte was in Ukraine on Friday to put out a framework for safety ensures for Ukraine with Zelenskyy.
“The primary layer needs to be for Ukrainian armed forces to be as robust as doable to defend this proud nation and nation going ahead,” Rutte mentioned, saying that may come after a peace deal or “long-term ceasefire.”
He added, “And the second layer needs to be the safety ensures supplied by Europe and america.”
Vance reaffirmed Trump’s earlier feedback that there might be no U.S. troops on the bottom in Ukraine as an element safety ensures.
“The president’s been very clear. There are usually not going to be boots on the bottom in Ukraine, however we’re going to proceed to play an lively function in attempting to make sure that the Ukrainians have the safety ensures and the arrogance they should cease the struggle on their finish,” he mentioned.
Requested about feedback Putin made in June, saying, “I think about the Russian and Ukrainian folks to be one nation. On this sense, all of Ukraine is ours,” and whether or not Ukraine has a proper to exist, Lavrov replied, “Ukraine has the suitable to exist, supplied it should let folks go.”
“The folks whom they name ‘terrorists,’ who they name species and who throughout a referenda – a number of referenda in Novorossiya, in Donbas, in Crimea determined that they belong to the Russian tradition and the federal government which got here to energy because of the coup was decided as a precedence to exterminate all the things Russian,” Lavrov mentioned.
Zelenskyy has lengthy opposed surrendering sovereign territory to Russia, saying the nation’s structure forbids it.
Lavrov additionally pushed again when requested to acknowledge that Russia invaded Ukraine, saying, “Russia began particular navy operation to defend the individuals who Zelenskyy and his predecessor didn’t think about as people.”
