Vance Issues Threat to Iran Over Cheating Truce
Speaking at Mathias Corvinus Collegium in Budapest, Vance made clear that Washington's patience with Tehran has firm limits, invoking both military and economic leverage as insurance against bad faith. "If they're going to lie, if they're going to cheat … then they're not going to be happy," he warned.
The vice president underscored the imbalance of power should diplomacy unravel, asserting that the US holds a "clear military advantage" and "extraordinary economic leverage" over Iran. He nonetheless left the door open to a negotiated settlement, conditioning it on genuine engagement from Tehran. "If the Iranians are willing … to work with us, I think we can make an agreement," Vance said.
'Disappointed' by Europe over Ukraine war
Vance pivoted to deliver a pointed rebuke of European leadership over the grinding Russia-Ukraine conflict, expressing Washington's frustration with what he characterized as insufficient commitment to ending the war. He singled out Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán as a notable exception, contending that most European capitals had fallen far short of Orbán's constructive approach.
Challenging the fundamental logic of continued fighting, Vance declared the war has "stopped making sense," cautioning against trading countless lives and economic resources for marginal territorial advances. "Is that worth losing hundreds of thousands of additional Russian and Ukrainian young men?" he asked pointedly.
Slams Ukrainian remarks toward Hungary
The vice president reserved some of his sharpest language for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, condemning remarks directed at Orbán as crossing a fundamental line of diplomatic conduct.
"It's completely scandalous. You should never have a foreign head of government or a foreign head of state threatening the head of government of an allied nation. It's preposterous. It's unacceptable," Vance said.
He also pushed back forcefully against characterizations of his Budapest visit — made ahead of upcoming elections — as foreign interference, turning the accusation back on the European Union over its financial pressure on Hungary.
"I've also been told that the Vice President of the United States coming and saying that Viktor Orban is doing a good job and is a helpful statesman to the cause of peace. That's foreign influence. But what's not foreign influence is when the European Union threatens billions of dollars withheld from Hungary because you guys protect your borders," Vance said.
He made no apologies for the optics of the visit, stating plainly that Washington felt compelled to act given the political climate surrounding Orbán. "We had to show that there are actually a lot of people and a lot of friends across the world who recognize that Victor and his government are doing a good job, and they're important partners for peace," Vance said, adding that the trip was motivated by the sense that "there was so much garbage happening against" Orbán and the election.
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