Vice President J.D. Vance is accusing The Wall Street Journal of misrepresenting his comments in a Friday headline that suggested he had threatened to use military and economic force to pressure Russia into agreeing to a deal to end the war in Ukraine. Vance claims the headline distorted his words, asserting that he did not propose such extreme measures but was discussing potential diplomatic solutions and a shift in U.S. foreign policy. The controversy highlights ongoing tensions between Vance and the media over his statements on international relations.
The article titled “Vance Wields Threat of Sanctions, Military Action to Push Putin Into Ukraine Deal” twisted the Vice President’s comments, claiming he threatened Russia with military intervention or sanction. Instead, he said that all options were on the table for President Donald Trump's negotiations between the two countries to end the war to continue, according to a transcript of the interview posted by Vance’s communications director, William Martin.
“Vice President JD Vance said Thursday that the U.S. would hit Moscow with sanctions and potentially military action if Russian President Vladimir Putin won’t agree to a peace deal with Ukraine that guarantees Kyiv’s long-term independence,” the opening paragraph to the outlet’s article read.
In a social media post, the WSJ stated that Vance vowed to hit Russia with sanctions and military action if [Russian President Vladimir] Putin [wouldn’t] agree to a peace deal that guarantees Ukraine’s independence.”
Martin took to social media to accuse the WSJ of publishing “pure fake news” about the vice president.
“The Vice President didn’t make any threats. He simply stated the fact that no one is going to take options away from President Trump as these negotiations begin,” he wrote on X.
This is pure fake news. Compare the transcript of @JDVance's conversation with WSJ to the headline being run here.
— William Martin (@wsmartin218) February 14, 2025
The Vice President didn’t make any threats. He simply stated the fact that no one is going to take options away from President Trump as these negotiations begin. https://t.co/OSOo7ECBqr pic.twitter.com/MiAynLJZsi
Vance also criticized the outlet for its “absurd, but not surprising” article it published mincing his words.
The fact that the WSJ twisted my words in the way they did for this story is absurd, but not surprising considering they have spent years pushing for more American sons and daughters in uniform to be unnecessarily deployed overseas.
— JD Vance (@JDVance) February 14, 2025