FLASH
Shkruar nga James Landale
Vice President Vance, the reason for the fight that happened yesterday at the White House...
JD Vance's attack on Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office on Friday showed that the US vice president was not afraid to appear as an 'attack dog', rather than serving like his predecessors, a restrained political leader.
It was Vance who launched the attack on Zelensky, before Donald Trump joined the 'fray' at the White House, in a meeting that had been cordial until the vice president sought to praise the president for seeking what he described as a diplomatic solution to the Ukraine-Russia war.
" What kind of diplomacy, JD, are you talking about? " said Zelensky, who has been critical of direct talks between Washington and Moscow. " What do you mean? "
" I'm talking about the kind of diplomacy that will end the destruction of your country ," Vance replied, tearing up the stunned Ukrainian leader.
" Mr. President, with respect, I think it's disrespectful for you to come into the Oval Office to try to discuss this in front of the American media ," he continued.
He also accused Zelensky of campaigning on behalf of Democrats during the 2024 presidential election. The Ukrainian leader visited a munitions factory in the critical state of Pennsylvania last September and met with Trump rival Kamala Harris at the White House.
Vance's rebuke of Zelensky drew widespread support among Republicans.
" I was very proud of J.D. Vance ," said South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham, a longtime Ukraine advocate and foreign policy hawk. He suggested that Zelensky resign.
Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville referred to Zelensky as a " Ukrainian weasel ."
Congressman Mike Lawyer of New York was more circumspect, saying the meeting was "a missed opportunity for both the United States and Ukraine."
Vance's attack on a visiting head of state is not typical of a US vice president.
Their job is often - but not always - to help elect the president and then sit quietly at their boss's side. To be a loyal lieutenant representing the president on foreign trips - standing by, a heartbeat away, so they say from the Presidency.
The contrast with Trump's first vice president, Mike Pence, who was much softer, could not be greater.
But Vance has long been skeptical of U.S. aid to Ukraine. When he ran for the Ohio Senate in 2022, he told a podcast: “ I have to be honest with you. I don’t really care what happens to Ukraine one way or the other .”
The vice president derided Trump as an idiot eight years ago, ahead of a political evolution that culminated in him becoming the heir to the president's "Make America Great Again" movement.
Despite Vance's popularity among conservative voters, Trump recently said in an interview with Fox News that it was "too early" to say whether the vice president would be next in line to run for president in 2028.
Vance appears to be taking on the role of a political brawler, going even further than the president in his outspoken criticism of the administration's enemies.
Many victims of Vance's 'language' are also America's allies. At the Munich Security Conference, Vance used the occasion to launch a scathing attack on the state of European democracy, accusing continental leaders of censoring free speech and failing to control immigration. The audience of politicians, generals and diplomats was horrified.
This was a full-blown ideological attack - a sign that the US under Mr Trump is not only moving away from Europe, shifting its security focus to China, but is also seeking to promote its Trump-style populism on the European continent. It is no coincidence that Vance dined with the leadership of the German far-right AfD party after his speech. /Adapted from “Pamphlet” by “BBC”
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