Vice President J.D. Vance dismissed an "absurd" accusation from Volodymyr Zelensky, as the Ukrainian leader returns to taking shots at the Trump administration's efforts to end the war in Ukraine.
Weeks after his infamous Oval Office spat with Vance and President Trump, Zelensky blasted the administration's diplomacy with Russia in a 60 Minutes interview.
Zelensky has repeatedly criticized the Trump administration's efforts to negotiate a cease-fire with Russia. Zelensky aired his grievances in a now-infamous Oval Office meeting where Trump and Vance criticized him for not showing gratitude for American support.
In his latest testy remarks, Zelensky accused Trump and Vance of dwelling in an "altered reality" invented by the Kremlin. Zelensky also claimed Vance is "justifying" Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
"'It seems to me that the Vice President is somehow justifying Putin's actions," Zelensky said.
The White House rejected Zelensky's latest rhetoric, which appears likely to further damage already strained ties between the U.S. and Ukraine.
"The Vice President has repeatedly said that this war was not justified to begin with and is the product of Joe Biden’s weakness and incompetence," Taylor Van Kirk, the press secretary to the vice president, told Daily Mail.
"Instead of mischaracterizing Vice President Vance's rhetoric," the spokesman added, "President Zelensky should be focused on bringing this conflict to a peaceful conclusion. His comments are counterproductive to the goal of achieving peace for his country."
Vance also issued a personal response to Zelensky's "absurd" charges in an interview Tuesday.
The vice president said it is not possible to end the war in Ukraine without an objective understanding of Russia's interests.
"I think it's sort of absurd for Zelensky to tell the [American] government, which is currently keeping his entire government and war effort together, that we are somehow on the side of the Russians," Vance added.
Meanwhile, Trump - who previously accused Zelensky of "gambling with World War III" during their Oval Office confrontation - said the Ukrainian leader has contributed to the death and destruction with his repeated efforts to escalate.
"When you start a war, you got to know you can win," Trump said Monday, ripping Zelensky for "always looking to purchase missiles."
"Millions of people dead because of three people," Trump said. "Let's say Putin number one, let's say Biden who had no idea what the hell he was doing, number two, and Zelensky."
