AMNA NAWAZ: Today in Munich, Vice President J.D.

Vance met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and with German political leaders, including the head of the far right AfD party.

GEOFF BENNETT: That latter meeting came after Vance spoke at the Munich Security Conference.

It's usually focused on Western adversaries.

Vance instead critiqued America's European allies.

Nick Schifrin is in Munich again for us tonight.

NICK SCHIFRIN: In front of a mostly European audience anxious for reassurance, today, Vice President Vance delivered a scolding.

J.D.

VANCE, Vice President of the United States: What I worry about is the threat from within, the retreat of Europe from some of its most fundamental values.

NICK SCHIFRIN: World leaders were hoping for clarity on the administration's plans for Ukraine.

Instead, Vance expressed implicit support for right-wing parties, including Germany's AfD, whose leader he met this afternoon and who's been endorsed by Elon Musk.

J.D.

VANCE: If American democracy can survive 10 years of Greta Thunberg's scolding, you guys can survive a few months of Elon Musk.

What no democracy, American, German or European, will survive is telling millions of voters that their thoughts and concerns, their aspirations, their pleas for relief are invalid or unworthy of even being considered.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Vance portrayed Europe as silencing critical and conservative voices, including by recently throwing out Romanian elections over Russian misinformation.

J.D.

VANCE: If you're running in fear of your own voters, there is nothing America can do for you.

NICK SCHIFRIN: But in a new Wall Street Journal interview, Vance embraced Europe's position on Ukraine, that the West could increase sanctions on Moscow and even deploy U.S. troops inside Ukraine to reach peace.

J.D.

VANCE: Good afternoon, everybody.

NICK SCHIFRIN: And, hours later, Vance met with Ukraine's delegation in a meeting that a senior Ukrainian official described to "PBS News Hour" as -- quote -- "very good."

J.D.

VANCE: We want to achieve a durable, lasting peace, not the kind of peace that's going to have Eastern Europe in conflict just a couple years down the road.

NICK SCHIFRIN: European leaders tell "PBS News Hour" they're confused by what they consider mixed U.S. messages on Ukraine, including those repeated today by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth during a visit to Poland.

PETE HEGSETH, U.S. Defense Secretary: The reality that returning to 2014 as borders as part of a negotiated settlement is unlikely.

The reality of U.S. troops in Ukraine is unlikely.

The reality of Ukraine membership in NATO as a part of a negotiated settlement unlikely.

NICK SCHIFRIN: German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius: BORIS PISTORIUS, German Defense Minister (through translator): I think this was careless, and I think it was a mistake.

In my view, it would have been much better to talk about Ukraine's possible NATO membership and possible territorial changes at the negotiating table first, and then with Ukraine present, and not with them already having Putin's price hanging over them.

NICK SCHIFRIN: And European leaders continue to doubt that peace with Putin is possible.

URSULA VON DER LEYEN, President, European Commission: President Putin says he's willing to meet, but on what terms?

VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY, Ukrainian President: I had good conversation with the President Trump.

We had some phone calls.

And he had a phone call with Putin.

And he said to me, I think that he, Putin -- that he wants to stop the war.

I said to him that he is a liar.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Zelenskyy added today that Ukraine would need real security guarantees in order to make any cease-fire durable.

He said that the U.S. needed to be part of those security guarantees.

But, Amna, today, a State Department spokesman said -- quote -- "We expect European partners to take the lead in establishing a durable security framework and look forward to their proposals."

AMNA NAWAZ: So, Nick, tell us about the mood in the room during Vice President Vance's speech and also what you're hearing from attendees tonight.

NICK SCHIFRIN: Well, President Trump this afternoon called Vance's speech -- quote -- "brilliant."

But, Amna, the speech landed like a lead balloon in the room, because, again, Europeans have been dealing with mixed messages on Ukraine all week from the Trump administration.

And they're hoping that the Trump administration treats them, treats Europe -- Ukraine as partners in trying to pursue peace, rather than going above Europe and Ukraine's head and speaking directly to Moscow.

That said, though, Amna, two senior European officials told me tonight that actually the speech was better than it could have been, that they preferred a scolding over a negative speech about Ukraine or even a speech in which the U.S. was announcing some kind of troop withdrawal from Europe.

But it's not just Europeans who are worried about Ukraine's policy.

Apparently, today, the Senate Armed Services Committee chairman, Roger Wicker, who's here today, called Hegseth's speech in Brussels a -- quote - - "rookie mistake, the kind of thing Tucker Carlson could have written," and Carlson is a -- quote -- "fool," as what Wicker said.

Ukraine's defenders continue to say Russia is not serious about peace.

And they have a case in point today that a Russian drone hit a radiation shield that protects the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.