His vice president isn’t much better. HuffPost noted:

Vice President JD Vance fumbled some very textbook facts of world history while talking foreign policy on Sunday’s ‘Meet the Press.’ During the interview, the Yale Law School alum defended President Donald Trump’s decision to entertain Russia’s terms for a peace deal with Ukraine by claiming all wars end in compromise.

NBC News’ Kristen Welker asked the Ohio Republican an important question, “If Russia is allowed to keep any of the territory that it illegally seized, what message does that send to China? Does it give China a green light to invade Taiwan? Does it give Russia a green light to invade other European countries, which is what your European allies are concerned about?”

Instead of answering the question directly, Vance took issue with the premise.

JD Vance: "This is how wars ultimately get settled. If you go back to World War 2, if you go back to every major conflict in human history, they all end with some kind of negotiation."

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2025-08-24T14:17:02.215Z

......Specifically as to World War II, the United States and its allies gave the Axis powers two choices: death or unconditional surrender. Negotiated settlements were not on the table and at no point did the U.S. consider allowing Germany or Japan to keep territories they had illegally seized by force.

The global conflict was resolved in Europe when Germany collapsed and Adolf Hitler killed himself, ahead of Japan’s surrender after the American bombings at Hiroshima and Nagasaki......

As for how and why Vance got this wrong, it’s possible that the vice president is just confused. It’s also possible that he’s laying the groundwork for a White House policy that would reward Russia for its invasion, as if this is simply “how wars ultimately get settled.”