Vice President Vance reveals Russia has made ‘significant concessions’ on security guarantees for Ukraine, hinting at a potential breakthrough in peace talks.
US Vice President JD Vance says Russia has made “significant concessions” toward a peace deal in the war in Ukraine, including security guarantees for Kiev.
US Vice President JD Vance said on August 24 that Russia has made “significant concessions” toward a peace deal in the war in Ukraine, and he believes there has been progress, although there is no clear sign that the conflict is nearing an end, according to Reuters news agency.
In an interview with NBC, Mr. Vance said that Russian President Vladimir Putin has made a number of concessions, including that Ukraine would receive post-conflict security guarantees, toward a peace deal.
“I think Russia has made significant concessions to the President [US Donald Trump] for the first time in the three and a half years of this conflict,” Mr. Vance said.
“They [Russia] have acknowledged that they are not going to get the regime change in Kiev that they initially wanted. And importantly, they have also acknowledged that there will be some form of security guarantee for Ukraine,” the vice president added.
On August 22, President Trump reiterated his threat to impose sanctions on Russia if there is no progress toward a peaceful resolution for Ukraine within two weeks.
In this regard, Mr. Vance said that sanctions would be considered on a case-by-case basis, while acknowledging that new penalties are unlikely to induce Russia to agree to a ceasefire with Ukraine.
Mr. Vance cited President Trump’s announcement this month of an additional 25% tariff on Indian goods, aimed at punishing New Delhi for buying Russian oil, as a form of economic leverage that would be used to promote peace.
“The president has tried to make it clear that Russia can be reintegrated into the world economy if it stops its attacks, but it will continue to be isolated if it does not,” Vance stressed.
Russia has not commented on Vice President Vance’s remarks.
In an interview with NBC, broadcast on August 24, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that Russia is ready to talk to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky because he is the “de facto leader” in Kiev, but any peace agreement can only be signed by a legitimate representative of Ukraine.
Lavrov did not rule out the possibility of direct talks between Putin and Zelensky. However, the Russian foreign minister stressed that the necessary groundwork for such talks had not yet been laid.
Zelensky’s presidential term ended more than a year ago, and Ukraine has not been able to hold new elections because of martial law. Russia has since declared Zelensky “illegitimate”.
Lavrov also said that Zelensky’s call for a meeting with Putin was “basically just a game” aimed at bolstering his legitimacy.
“A game that he is very good at, because he wants drama in everything he does. He is not interested in substance,” the Russian diplomat said.
Ukraine has not commented on Lavrov’s statement.