Vice President JD Vance suggested on Wednesday, October 29, 2025, that diplomatic relations between the United States and Ukraine have improved following his heated confrontation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the Oval Office this past February.
The vice president made the remarks during an appearance on The New York Post’s “Pod Force One” podcast, where he discussed foreign policy, his working relationship with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and speculation about a potential 2028 presidential run.
In the wide-ranging interview with host Miranda Devine, Vance indicated that the relationship between Washington and Kyiv has grown more productive since the February incident, though he provided few specifics about what changed or how the diplomatic dynamics shifted following the high-profile clash. The February confrontation, which drew international attention, marked a significant moment in the Trump administration’s approach to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.
The vice president used the podcast appearance to address President Donald Trump’s recent suggestion that he and Rubio could form an “unstoppable” Republican ticket in 2028. Vance revealed that Trump first raised the possibility during a private lunch approximately six months ago, around April 2025. He characterized the conversation as premature, given the administration’s current priorities.
“My attitude is the American people elected me to be vice president,” Vance said in the interview. “I’m going to work as hard as I can to make the president successful over the next 3 years and 3 months, and if we get to a point where something else is in the offer, let’s handle it then.”
Vance, 41, emphasized his focus remains on addressing the affordability crisis he said former President Joe Biden left behind. He acknowledged the administration has made progress during its nine months in office, but stressed significant work remains ahead. The vice president described Rubio, 54, as his best friend within the administration and dismissed suggestions that potential 2028 ticket speculation could create tension between them.
Vance told Devine that he and Rubio try to meet for lunch every couple of weeks to discuss ongoing matters and coordinate their approaches to foreign policy challenges.
In a separate portion of the interview, Vance offered insights into his evolving view of Trump. He described himself as a “Never Trump guy” during the 2016 presidential campaign. The vice president explained he began knowing Trump quite well after receiving his endorsement during his 2022 Senate run in Ohio and subsequently serving as a campaign surrogate in 2024.
Vance told NJ.com that Trump demonstrated courage and grit in standing up to what he characterized as the worst forces in American society while maintaining a robust view of military power without engaging in foreign conflicts. He said his time in office revealed Trump has a very good heart, particularly with children, including Vance’s own.
The vice president described Trump as having a magnetic personality that naturally attracts people, especially young children. He repeated a friend’s observation that Trump possesses animal instincts similar to a lion on the savanna, maintaining an almost sixth sense about his surroundings and understanding situations beyond what he can physically observe. According to Vance, this instinctive ability helps Trump identify who has the country’s interests at heart versus those with alternative motives.
When asked about disagreements with the president over the nine-month period since returning to the White House, Vance acknowledged private disagreements occur but stressed the importance of supporting Trump’s agenda once decisions are made. He described his dual responsibility as providing honest counsel while executing presidential decisions once they are finalized, using the phrase “aye, aye sir” to characterize his approach.
Devine raised the Iranian conflict, noting some Trump supporters opposed U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in June 2025. Vance indicated he was not worried about escalation because he understood the decisions Trump was actually making, suggesting outside observers lacked full context about the president’s thinking and actions.
The podcast appearance came as Trump made ambiguous comments about potentially running for a third term despite constitutional limitations. On Monday, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that he would love to run again and has his best numbers. On Wednesday, he acknowledged the Constitution prevents him from seeking a third term but stopped short of offering definitive statements ruling out the possibility.
Vance dominated early polling for the 2028 Republican presidential nomination, often leading competitors by as much as 40 percentage points according to RealClearPolitics survey aggregators. Despite this statistical advantage, he maintains that his focus remains on current responsibilities rather than future political ambitions, stating he has never woken up thinking about how to become president.