Vance to Europe: Your Biggest Threat Is From 'Within'

European leaders were looking to clarify President Trump's approach to Russia and Ukraine at the Munich Security Conference on Friday. But Vice President JD Vance only mentioned Ukraine in passing during a speech in which he scolded Europe's leaders for opposing anti-immigration parties, while signaling support for political parties of the far right, per the New York Times. "The threat that I worry the most about vis-à-vis Europe is not Russia," nor China. It's "the threat from within," the vice president said, per Politico. "The retreat of Europe from some of its most fundamental values," through the supposed suppression of free speech.

He accused leaders of failing to uphold democratic values while suggesting that efforts to block far-right, anti-immigrant parties from joining governments was a violation of voters' will. Other German political parties have refused to work with the Alternative for Germany party, whose members have used racist and antisemitic language. But "if you are running in fear of your own voters, there is nothing America can do for you," Vance said, per the Times. He spoke against efforts to restrict Russian misinformation and election influence campaigns and said Christians were being silenced through laws against abortion protests, the outlet adds.

"Dismissing people, dismissing their concerns ... shutting down media, shutting down elections ... protects nothing," the vice president went on, bringing up accusations leveled at the Trump administration. "It is the most surefire way to destroy democracy." Politico describes it as "a US-style MAGA, red meat speech that eschewed detailed discussion of defense and security," the very topic of the conference. "This is not acceptable," German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius responded, per the Times. "This is not the Europe, not the democracy, where I live." German lawmaker Thomas Silberhorn added, "German extremists who explicitly refer to national socialism—part of the AfD—are clearly anti the US that liberated us from national socialism." (More JD Vance stories.)