The Vice President of the United States, JD Vance, generated criticism in Europe for statements that seemed to belittle the European plan to deploy peacekeeping forces in Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire. In an interview with Fox News on Monday, Vance stated that giving the U.S. an economic advantage in Ukraine was a better security guarantee than sending 20,000 soldiers from a country that hasn't participated in wars for decades. These statements were interpreted as derogatory in the United Kingdom and France, the only two countries that had publicly committed to participating in the deployment of a European peacekeeping force in Ukraine. Politicians from both nations criticized Vance, accusing him of dishonoring the hundreds of soldiers who had fought alongside U.S. forces in Afghanistan and Iraq. The party Renaissance of French President Emmanuel Macron expressed on social media that the French and British soldiers who had lost their lives fighting terrorism alongside U.S. forces deserved better treatment than the disdain shown by the U.S. Vice President. For his part, the Conservative Party's shadow Defense Secretary in Britain, James Cartlidge, called Vance's comments disrespectful. In response to the criticism, Vance clarified that he did not specifically mention the United Kingdom or France and acknowledged the brave efforts of both countries in fighting alongside the U.S. over the last two decades and beyond.
