Pence says Trump’s Ukraine war promise requires giving ‘Putin what he wanted’

Former Vice President Mike Pence Monday chided former President Trump over his assertion that he could end the war in Ukraine within 24 hours, arguing that doing so would mean giving in to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Pence, who is running against Trump for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination, was asked on Fox News how he believes the war in Ukraine will end.

“I think it ends by giving the Ukrainians what they need to win,” he said. “I mean, there’s some talk, my former running mate likes to talk about solving it in a day. The only way you’d solve this war in a day is if you gave Vladimir Putin what he wanted.”

Pence, who has previously criticized Trump for praising Putin, warned that the Russian leader would likely move into neighboring countries if he was able to overtake Ukraine, pointing to Lithuania, Estonia or Latvia.

“And those will be countries where we’d have to send our armed forces to go and fight under our NATO treaty,” Pence said. “And so, I think it’s in the interest of our country to give them what they need to stop them there, repel them there. And make no mistake about it … [it’s] the most effective way to send a message to China that America and the West will not tolerate military aggression by Russia or by China to redraw international lines by force.”

Trump has repeatedly claimed since Russia first invaded Ukraine in February 2022 that he would be able to bring the conflict to an end within a day, though he has not detailed how he would do so. He has also argued the U.S. should not play such a significant role in sending military aid to Ukraine to fight off Russian forces.

Pence, who met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Ukraine late last month, has emerged as perhaps the most outspoken GOP presidential candidate in favor of providing support to the Ukrainians.

He has argued that while it is not America’s war, the fight in Ukraine is part of a broader struggle for freedom abroad that is in U.S. interests. He has been critical of the Biden administration for the pace of providing military equipment to Ukraine to fight Russian forces.