Asked about Republican vice presidential nominee Senator J.D. Vance in a weekend interview with The New Yorker, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky delivered his harshest criticism of a U.S. official since the start of the war with Russia.
Zelensky has made his stance clear regarding the controversial 2024 US presidential election, meeting with President Biden, Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Harris and Republican nominee, former President Trump.
But on Sunday, he took off the gloves. Interview with New York publication Zelensky called Vance an “extremist” and warned that his proposals to end the war in Ukraine would instead lead to “global confrontation.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attends a joint press conference with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Kyiv, Ukraine, September 20, 2024. (Pool photo by Christoph Soeder via The Associated Press)
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Vance said earlier this month that if Trump is elected to the White House, he would work with Russian, Ukrainian and European leaders to Establishing a “peaceful solution” That would give Russia territory that Moscow has illegally seized since the 2022 invasion.
If Kiev agreed to cede land to Russia, a demilitarized zone would be established along the current front line, Ukraine would be strengthened to deter a third Russian invasion, and Kiev would agree to abandon plans to join NATO. Western security experts say the proposal would be a major win for Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“If this is the plan, America is heading towards a global conflict,” Zelenskiy said. “Whoever claims control of territory, who is not the rightful owner, who came in with a machine gun a month or a week ago, will be in power.”
The Ukrainian president warned that such an attitude would not only be costly for Kyiv and the Ukrainian people, but would also endanger world order everywhere, including in the Middle East and wherever China threatens Western interests.
“We will eventually get to a world where might is right,” Zelenskiy said. “It will be a very different world, a global showdown.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant in Scranton, Pennsylvania on September 22, 2024. (Commonwealth Media Services/Distributed via Reuters)
While criticizing Vance, Zelensky appeared to emphasize that he had a different experience dealing with the leading Republican presidential candidate.
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“I have to say that wasn't the case with Trump. He and I spoke on the phone and his message was, from my point of view, extremely positive,” Zelensky told The New Yorker, recounting Trump's platitudes such as “we understand” and “we support you.”
Trump has come under fire for not offering details about what his administration will do to help Ukraine, even as he has been vocal about the amount of aid Washington has provided to Kiev.
The former president has said that if elected, he would end the war between Ukraine and Russia before taking over as chief executive in January 2025, but has not explained how he would achieve that.
“Trump is making political statements on the campaign trail,” Zelensky said. “He may think he knows how to stop a war, but in my opinion he doesn't know how to stop a war.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visited the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant in Scranton, Pennsylvania on September 22, 2024. (Press Service of the President of Ukraine/Distributed via Reuters)
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“The deeper you look into this war, the less you often understand it,” Zelensky added.
Zelenskiy, who is in the US for the UN General Assembly, said he would meet with Biden and present a “winning plan” to further unite Western allies against Russia and further ensure Ukraine's security.
The Ukrainian president did not provide details of the plan but it is expected to include a request for additional military aid and a lifting of the ban on long-range strikes, as well as plans to speed up Kiev's accession to the EU and other alliances.
“A strong Ukraine will bring President Putin to the negotiating table, I am convinced of that,” Zelensky said.
With just over a month and a half until the presidential election, there are concerns Biden may reject calls for more U.S. assistance for Ukraine.
“That's a terrifying idea. It means that Biden doesn't want to end the war in a way that denies Russia a victory, and we would end up in a very long war, an impossible and exhausting situation with huge numbers of people dying,” he added.
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But Zelensky also said Ukraine was used to “living with Plan B” and that he “does not blame” Biden for the outcome of the war.
President Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy after a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit, June 13, 2024, in Fasano, Italy. (Reuters/Kevin Lamarque)
“After all, he took a powerful and historic step by choosing to support us when the war began, and that action has inspired our other partners to do the same,” he added.
But Zelensky warned that a diplomatic end to the war could only be achieved if Kiev is given what it needs to be in a position to properly negotiate with Moscow.
“If we don't want this war to drag on, if we don't want Putin to bury us under the bodies of his own people and take many more Ukrainian lives in the process, then we propose a plan to strengthen Ukraine,” he said. “This is not fantasy or science fiction, and, importantly, it does not require Russian cooperation to succeed.”
“The plan specifies what our partners can do without Russia's participation. If diplomacy is the desire of both sides, then the implementation of our plan rests solely on us and our partners before diplomacy can take effect,” Zelensky added.
Vance's campaign did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
