This was part of JD Vance’s first international trip as US vice president. The former Ohio Senator was on a tour of Europe representing President Donald Trump’s second administration on the world stage.
A key point in his itinerary was his speech in front of leaders representing some of the US’s closest allies at the 61st Munich Security Conference on February 14th.
But rather than celebrating these historic bonds, Vance took a more aggressive approach. Sitting on the podium in Munich, he shocked onlookers by criticizing Europe, warning laws and restrictions that it would “destroy democracy.”
It’s been almost three months since Vance gave that speech, and on Wednesday the Vice President returned to the Munich Forum, this time for a leadership meeting in Washington, D.C.
In a question-and-answer segment with German diplomat Wolfgang Ischinger, Vance revisited his February speech. He also previewed the US negotiations on Iran’s nuclear program and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Below are three important points from what he said:
Repairing Europe and fences
The Wednesday release shows Vance spoke for the third time to an event hosted by the Munich Security Conference. But his final speech — with accusations of democratic reversal — loomed heavily on the lawsuit.
Vance tried to reconstruct his statements as respectful criticism between his allies on Wednesday, highlighting the warm relations that the US and Europe have traditionally shared.
“I think there’s a trade-off between this wholeheartedly and as a friend — police the boundaries and scope of debate in democratic speech and losing faith in our people. “It’s fine if one country is trying to portray it a little differently than the US.”
He added that the issue of freedom of speech and democracy principles is an issue that the United States is working on.
“I think we must note that all of us, especially the United States, will not draw the line in such a way that we really undermine the very democratic legitimacy of all our civilization resting,” the Vice President explained.
“I think that’s the point here fundamentally. It’s not Europe, America is good.”
Ultimately, he said Europe and the United States are “on the same civilization team,” and he emphasized his belief that even if the parties exchange criticism, a wedge cannot come between them.
Walking along the fine lines with Iran
Vance also spoke cheerfully in his assessment of the US efforts to reduce Iran’s nuclear program, saying that both countries are on the “right route.”
“Without preventing negotiations, I say: So far, it’s very good. I’m very pleased with how the Iranians responded to some of the points we made,” Vance said.
Vance’s optimism provided a counterpoint to concerns that continued tensions between the US and Iran could derail negotiations.
Last week, the anticipated fourth-round speech in Rome was postponed for “logistical reasons,” but experts noted that the delay coincided with a new slate of US sanctions on Iran’s oil industry. These talks are scheduled to resume this weekend in Muscat, Oman’s capital.
On Wednesday, Vance highlighted the US position that Washington would not allow Iran to acquire nuclear weapons, but he expressed ambiguity about nuclear energy for civilian purposes.
“We don’t care if people want nuclear power or not. We’re fine with that. But you can’t have the kind of enrichment program that allows you to reach nuclear weapons. That’s where we draw the line,” Vance said.
Still, the issue of nuclear enrichment has been a point of contention in recent weeks, even for private purposes. Certain US officials indicate that Iran wants to eliminate its enrichment program entirely.
On his part, Vance questioned whether Iran would likely use uranium enrichment just for nuclear power, not weapons.
“Let’s ask this basic question: Which governments in the world have no nuclear weapons and civil nuclear power and enrichment?” asked Vance. “Who has no answer.”
Iran has long denied its ambition to seek nuclear weapons, indicating it is willing to scale back its enrichment programme. Previously, he signed a 2015 deal called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), which imposed restrictions on the nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief.
However, during his first term, Trump withdrew the US from the agreement and collapsed the agreement. The US President later tried to rekindle nuclear negotiations with Iran in his second term.
“I really think that if Iranian Domino falls, we’ll see nuclear proliferation across the Middle East,” Vance said.
I’m not “pessimistic” about peace in Ukraine
The Vice President also shared insights into another area of tense international negotiations, a war between Russia and Ukraine.
Since February 2022, Russia has led a full-scale Ukraine invasion after acquiring regions including Crimea in 2014.
In his campaign for reelection last year, Trump pledged to end the slowly crushing war that had killed thousands of people. He insisted that he would stop the war on his first day in office, but he then backtracked and told Time magazine what they meant “figically.”
But nonetheless, Trump tried to act as a mediator between Ukrainian President Voldymir Zelensky and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. However, his administration has been criticized for negotiating in isolation with Russia and appearing to acquiesce Putin’s demands.
For example, Trump has repeatedly talked about Russia, denounced the war in Ukraine, saying that Zelenkie could “forget” membership in the NATO military alliance. His officials also suggest that Ukraine is “impossible” to regain territory lost to Russian invasions.
Vance took a slightly harsher stance against Russia on Wednesday, but emphasized that he and the Trump administration had not made eye contact with Putin.
“You don’t have to agree to justification for the Russian war, and certainly the President and I have criticized the full-scale aggression,” Vance said. “But we need to try and understand where the other side is coming from to end the conflict.”
The Vice President sought to justify Trump’s approach as an effort to bring both sides to the negotiation table, in the spirit of what he called “strategic realism.”
“Our view is that you have been doing this war for so long, and neither party has even spoken constructively about what they need to end the conflict,” Vance explained.
“The frustration we were saying to both sides is that they hate each other so much. If there’s an hour-long conversation on either side, the first 30 minutes are complaining about historical complaints from four, five or ten years ago.”
Vance has taken the position that Russia is “looking for too much” in terms of concessions from Ukraine. However, he also criticized Ukraine for sticking to the 30-day ceasefire proposal that first emerged from Saudi Arabia’s talks with the US.
“What the Russians said is that a 30-day ceasefire is not our strategic concern,” Vance said. “So we tried to move beyond our obsession with the 30-day ceasefire.
He added that he is “not yet pessimistic” about the negotiated outlook for peace, if he is rummaging from the White House that Trump may withdraw from negotiations entirely.