Vance Slammed For Treatment of Zelenskyy By Cousin Who Fought Alongside Ukraine For Years: 'An Ambush of Bad Faith'

Nate Vance, a former U.S. Marine who fought in Ukraine, has condemned his cousin, Vice President JD Vance, for his treatment of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, calling it "an ambush of bad faith" and expressing deep disappointment in his family member's stance on the war.

Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, many foreign fighters, including Americans, have joined the Ukrainian Armed Forces to resist Russian aggression.

Nate Vance, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps before working in the Texas oil industry, was among those who volunteered, News Ukraine reported. After joining in June 2022, he fought in some of the war's most intense battles, including in Bakhmut and Avdiivka, as part of Ukraine's "Da Vinci Wolves" battalion.

Meanwhile, his cousin JD Vance, a rising Republican star, was elected senator in 2023, and became vice president after Donald Trump won the presidential race in 2024. JD Vance has consistently questioned U.S. aid to Ukraine, arguing it is not in America's interest.

In January, after returning from Ukraine, Nate watched in dismay as his cousin and Trump criticized Zelenskyy during a White House meeting. Nate, who had risked his life on the front lines, felt betrayed by JD's remarks, particularly his skepticism of Ukrainian military efforts.

"JD is a good and intelligent guy. When he criticized aid to Ukraine, I thought it was because he had to cater to a certain electorate and that it was just political maneuvering. But what they did to Zelenskyy was an ambush of absolute bad faith," Nate told French outlet Le Figaro.

The Texan accused his cousin of playing politics rather than engaging in an honest discussion about the realities of the war. Nate allegedly attempted multiple times to reach the vice president to share firsthand accounts, but was ignored.

Nate was especially outraged by the vice president's reliance on secondhand reports while reportedly disregarding the experiences of Nate fighting alongside Ukrainian forces.

Following his public criticism of J.D. Vance, Nate continues to advocate for Ukraine, now seeking to publish a memoir detailing his time on the battlefield.

Originally published on Latin Times