Vice President JD Vance is set to participate in a Q&A session for the Munich Leaders Conference, organized by the Munich Security Conference (MSC) on Wednesday morning, according to reports from Breitbart News.
Sources close to the event, taking place at the Willard Hotel in Washington, DC, indicate that Wolfgang Isinger, a former US ambassador to Germany and past MSC chairman, will facilitate the Q&A.
Vance’s involvement follows his controversial speech at the MSC in February, which ruffled some feathers in Europe. He addressed global leaders, asserting that Europe’s main threat is “the threat from within.” He emphasized that:
For years, we’ve argued that our support hinges on shared democratic principles. Initiatives—from policies in Ukraine to issues of digital censorship—are framed as defenses of democracy. But when we witness European courts annulling elections and officials threatening to do the same, it raises questions about their commitment to high standards. I say this because, fundamentally, I believe we share a common goal. It’s not enough to merely discuss democratic values; we must embody them.
Reflecting on the Cold War era, defenders of democracy were pitted against harsher authoritarian regimes in Europe. Consider the censored opposition that restricted elections and church activities. Were they the good guys? Certainly not. And we should be grateful they lost the Cold War.
He also expressed concern about the decline of free speech throughout Europe.
German Minister of Defense Boris Pistorius responded to Vance’s remarks, stating, “It’s not acceptable to accuse us of lacking genuine democratic values. I made this clear as a representative of the German government here in Munich,” he told DW during the event.
Supporters of Vance claim he has highlighted significant threats to European democracy and freedom, pointing to the recent banning of populist leader Marine Le Pen from the French presidential race in March.
Additionally, last week, Germany classified the right-wing Alternative for Germany (AFD), the second-largest party in the nation, as an extremist organization.
