(NewsNation) — Vice President JD Vance defended President Donald Trump’s approach to the Russia-Ukraine war Thursday at the annual Conservative Political Action Conference, also known as CPAC.
“How are you going to end the war unless you’re talking to Russia?” Vance said at the conference in National Harbor, Maryland, just outside the nation’s capital.
Vance also emphasized what he called Trump’s desire for “lasting peace in Europe.”
“Peace is in the interest of Russia, it’s in the interest of Ukraine, it’s in the interest of Europe, but most importantly peace is in the interest of the American people, and he’s going to fight for it for the remainder of his administration,” he said.
“I really believe we’re on the cusp of peace in Europe for the first time in three years,” he added.
Vance’s remarks come as Trump ramps up criticism of Ukraine’s leaders, blaming them for starting the three-year war with Russia, arguing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy “should have never started it.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other senior officials met Tuesday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Saudi Arabia and agreed to stay in close communication to work to end the war.
Vance addressed CPAC, which calls itself the largest gathering of conservatives in the world, for the first time as vice president of the United States. He previously spoke at the conference about his life experience and positions on foreign aid.
President Donald Trump is scheduled to speak at the conference Saturday.
Other speakers include Kari Lake, a former Arizona Senate candidate; Steve Bannon, former chief strategist for the White House; and conservative commentator Ben Shapiro.
The annual four-day conference, which traditionally has brought together different factions of the Republican Party, has become increasingly aligned with Trump’s “Make America Great Again” wing.