JD Vance tells Russia to ‘accept reality’: ‘How many more people are they willing to lose?’

Vice President JD Vance said Russia needs to come to the negotiating table with Ukraine, echoing President Donald Trump’s recent remarks that Kyiv could reclaim its lost territory in the ongoing war.

Speaking on Fox News Sunday (September 28), Vance urged Moscow to recognize the current situation on the ground.

“The Russians have got to wake up and accept reality here. A lot of people are dying. They don't have a lot to show for it,” Vance told the news outlet.

He added that Russia is now on the defensive: “How many more people are they willing to lose? How many more people are they willing to kill for very little, if any, gain in the military advantage on the ground there?” he said. “I think the answer is, hopefully not that much, but certainly our attitude here is we're going to keep on working for peace, and we hope the Russians actually wake up to the reality on the ground.”

Trump signals optimism for Ukraine

Vance expressed support for Trump’s recent statement at the United Nations after meeting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in which the President suggested Ukraine could reclaim lost territories.

“The president is looking at the situation. He’s saying, ‘Look, the Russian economy is in shambles. The Russians are not gaining much on the battlefield. It’s clearly time for them to listen to his passionate plea for them to come to the table and actually talk seriously about peace,’ ” Vance told the outlet.

He added that recent developments on the battlefield have shifted momentum: “If you go back to the last days of the Biden administration, if you go back to even a couple of months ago, the Russians were conquering large amounts of territory,” Vance said. “What’s happening right now, as the president articulated, is [that] Russia is really stalled. They’re killing a lot of people. They themselves are losing a lot of people. And they don’t have much territorial gain to show for it.”