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Vice President JD Vance left for Pakistan this morning, facing a steep task. He's helping the U.S. and Iran come to a peace agreement at a time when the two countries do not even agree on the terms of the current ceasefire. NPR White House correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben has this story on what to expect.
DANIELLE KURTZLEBEN, BYLINE: Vance seemed confident speaking to reporters this morning next to Air Force Two.
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JD VANCE: If the Iranians are willing to negotiate in good faith, we're certainly willing to extend the open hand. If they're going to try to play us, then they're going to find that the negotiating team is not that receptive.
KURTZLEBEN: In Islamabad, Vance will be trying to achieve some big goals, stopping Iran from enriching uranium and getting them to fully open the Strait of Hormuz. It's a new challenge for Vance, who was, not long ago, the junior senator from Ohio.
Vance has staked out a particular place on foreign policy in this administration. Publicly, he is always President Trump's loyal hypeman, backing him up even in tense situations, as when Vance famously confronted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office.
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VANCE: Have you said thank you once this entire meeting?
PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY: A lot of times, even today.
VANCE: No, in this entire meeting, have you said thank you?
KURTZLEBEN: But Vance has gained a reputation for privately arguing against overseas interventions. In accidentally shared Signal conversations last year, Vance advised top officials against bombing Houthi targets in Yemen, saying, I think we are making a mistake. In addition, it has been widely reported that Vance initially opposed bombing Iran. This week, a reporter asked him if that was why he was heading up this delegation, as well as whether Iran asked specifically for him to be involved. In both cases, he demurred.
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VANCE: I don't know that. I would be surprised if that was true, but, you know, I wanted to be involved because I thought I could make a difference.
KURTZLEBEN: Vance has been a central figure in the Trump presidency. This year, he has been most visible in leading the president's anti-fraud task force. But thus far, he hasn't been front and center on foreign policy. In January, he found himself defending his role after the U.S. attacked Venezuela.
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VANCE: So I've heard a couple of things - one, that I was kept out of the planning for the Venezuela operation. That's false.
KURTZLEBEN: As a Marine, Vance served in Iraq, but as an elected official, he doesn't have a foreign policy record that might give some hints as to how these negotiations will go. Vance has proven to be an able spokesperson but one who can be harsh. He said this this week when asked about an Iranian official who accused the U.S. of breaking the ceasefire.
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VANCE: I actually wonder how good he is at understanding English because there are things that he said that, frankly, didn't make sense in some of the - in the context of the negotiations that we've had.
KURTZLEBEN: Furthermore, it's an open question what kind of outcomes the U.S. will accept. The high-profile negotiation could also be a high-risk, high-reward situation for Vance if he wants to run for president in 2028. Here's Marc Short, who served as chief of staff to Vice President Mike Pence.
MARC SHORT: I think for the ascendant, isolationist wing of the Republican Party, I think JD - you know, if he's able to negotiate a deal to last, then I'm sure it's beneficial in his mind. But I think there's a lot of risk, too, because Iran has violated every agreement we've ever had with them.
KURTZLEBEN: Still, Vance is the vice president, meaning his wins are also the president's wins. Last week at an Easter breakfast, however, Trump said any losses wouldn't be his own.
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PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: So if it doesn't happen, I'm blaming JD Vance.
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TRUMP: If it does happen, I'm taking full credit it.
KURTZLEBEN: It had the cadence of a joke, but it also carried the ring of truth to it. Danielle Kurtzleben, NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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