JD Vance says Putin more 'soft-spoken' than expected, recalls Trump's phone call

UPDATED: Aug 21, 2025 06:28 IST

US Vice President JD Vance offered an unusually soft description of Vladimir Putin, even as he recalled how President Donald Trump stunned European and Ukrainian leaders by abruptly phoning the Russian president during White House talks this week.

“You know that the American media has a particular image of him,” Vance told Fox News’ The Ingraham Angle. “He’s soft-spoken in a certain way. He’s very deliberate. He’s very careful. And I think fundamentally, he’s a person who looks out for the interests as he sees it, of Russia.”

Vance added that Putin respects President Donald Trump because “he knows the president looks out for the interests of the American people.”

Though Vance acknowledged he has never met Putin in person, he said he has spoken with him “a number of times.”

Vance comments came as he described how Trump, in the middle of a packed diplomatic day with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and European leaders on Monday, unexpectedly decided to dial Moscow.

“So, we’re actually in the East Wing of the White House, and the president says, ‘You know, we’ve had a pretty good meeting. I’m going to call Vladimir Putin, see what he says about it,’” Vance recalled. “And everybody’s like, ‘Oh, you’re going to call him next week?’ And he’s like, ‘No, what time is it in Moscow? Let’s call him right now.’”

Trump later said the conversation opened the door to possible face-to-face talks between Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

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