Vice President JD Vance is attending and speaking at the annual Munich Security Conference with the negotiations surrounding Russia’s war in Ukraine in high focus. 

Vance is expected to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The entire event comes as President Donald Trump, who vowed during the campaign to end the war on his first day in office, said he would meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Saudi Arabia in the “not-too-distant future.”

Here are five elements to know about the United States’s presence at the conference: 

1. Vance warns Russia with military and economic threats

Vance said the U.S. is prepared to strike a blow against Moscow using sanctions and possibly military action if Putin does not agree to a peace deal that would guarantee long-term Ukrainian independence. 

“There are economic tools of leverage, there are of course military tools of leverage” the U.S. could use against Putin, Vance said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal ahead of his speech.

Vance said the possibility of sending U.S. troops to Ukraine remains “on the table” should Moscow fail to negotiate the end of the war in good faith.

“The president is not going to go in this with blinders on,” Vance said. “He’s going to say, ‘Everything is on the table. Let’s make a deal.’”

2. Senior Republican criticizes Hegseth for Ukraine comments

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Roger Wicker (R-MS) said Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made a “rookie mistake” when he called Ukraine’s desire to return to its prewar borders “unrealistic.”

“Hegseth is going to be a great defense secretary, although he wasn’t my choice for the job,” Wicker told Politico at the conference. “But he made a rookie mistake in Brussels, and he’s walked back some of what he said but not that line.”

In Brussels, Hegseth said it was “unrealistic” to expect Ukraine to return to its border pre-2014, when Russia first invaded Ukraine and annexed Crimea.

PETE HEGSETH: FIGHTING FOR PRE-2014 BORDERS ‘UNREALISTIC’ FOR UKRAINE

“I don’t know who wrote the speech — it is the kind of thing Tucker Carlson could have written, and Carlson is a fool,” Wicker said. Carlson is the only American to have interviewed Putin since Russia invaded Ukraine and has made pro-Putin talking points on his show.

Hegseth later backtracked those comments after Trump spoke with Putin to begin negotiations, saying, “Everything is on the table.”

Wicker has been a strong supporter of Ukraine in the Senate. He said he was “surprised” by Hegseth’s original comments and “heartened” that the new defense secretary had reversed course, preferring the U.S. to be more firm against Russia. 

“Everybody knows … and people in the administration know you don’t say before your first meeting what you will agree to and what you won’t agree to,” Wicker said, adding that he was “puzzled” and “disturbed” by Hegseth’s comments.

3. Vance accuses Europe of abandoning democratic principles

In an address to the conference, Vance accused Europe on Friday of abandoning its democratic principles, which much U.S. aid to the continent is based upon. He said what he was worried about “is the threat from within.”

“The retreat of Europe from some of its most fundamental values, values shared with the United States of America,” he said.

“For years, we’ve been told that everything we fund and support is in the name of our shared democratic values. Everything from our Ukraine policy to digital censorship is billed as a defense of democracy,” Vance added.

He used Romania canceling its elections as one example of his claim. In 2024, a court ruled that Russian disinformation had slanted public opinion and thrown the election in favor of the Russian-backed candidate, hence why the election had to be canceled, which Vance did not mention in the speech.

Vance brought up various examples of what he views as free speech violations and censorship in European nations. However, he did not accuse Russia, which frequently censors political speech, of censorship.

4. Hegseth on future US involvement in Europe

Hegseth said European nations must provide the “overwhelming” share of funding for Ukraine and hinted that the U.S.’s historic involvement in Europe may be fading.

“What happens five or 10 or 15 years from now is part of a larger discussion that reflects the threat level, America’s posture, our needs around the globe, but most significantly, the capability of European countries to step up,” Hegseth said at a press conference. 

“And that’s why our message is so stark to our European allies,” he continued. “Now is the time to invest because you can’t make an assumption that America’s presence will last forever.”

Trump has long lamented that the U.S. has paid more than other European nations to arm Ukraine in the war.

5. Zelensky believes US does not have concrete plan to end war

Ahead of his talks with the vice president, Zelensky said he is unsure if the U.S. actually has a plan to negotiate the end of the war. 

“I don’t think that the U.S. has a ready plan to end the war,” Zelensky told reporters in Munich.

He also said that if Ukraine is not accepted into NATO, it must expand its army to 1.5 million soldiers equipped with modern weaponry to ensure national security from another Russian attack.

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Ukraine is not expected to hold talks with the Russian side in Munich on Friday. Ukrainian officials said they are of the position that the U.S., Europe, and Ukraine need a common stance before talks with the Kremlin. 

“Talks with Russians in Munich are not expected,” Ukrainian communications adviser Dmytro Lytvyn said.