‘Iran, maybe Pakistan... actually UK’: Trump's running mate pick Vance jokes about '1st Islamist country to get nuclear weapon’

Washington DC, July 16

Former US President’s Donald Trump’s pick of vice-presidential running mate JD Vance for the 2024 elections–a prominent advocate of “America First”– is critical of the US support to Ukraine and has backed Trump’s position on Isreal’s war against Hamas.

The 39-year-old first time lawmaker from Ohio, who once called Trump “America’s Hitler” has over the last eight years undergone a radical political transformation from a blue-collar bard and self-described “Never Trump” conservative to “hard-edged MAGA loyalist” and “dogged defender” of the former president, Politico reported.

Al Jazeera published comments made by Vance earlier this month when he said had been talking with a friend about nuclear proliferation.

“What is the first truly Islamist country that will get a nuclear weapon? Maybe it’s Iran, maybe Pakistan already kind of counts. And then we sort of finally decided, maybe it’s actually the UK since Labour just took over,” Vance said as per Al-Jazeera.

Vance also had this piece of advice for his “Tory friends” that they needed to “get a handle” on the defeat of the Conservative Party in the UK.

The remarks were made at a National Conservatism conference in Washington after the Labour Party had won a landslide victory in the recently held general elections in the UK.

Meanwhile, at the Milwaukee Republican convention on Monday in which Trump was officially nominated as the Republican Party’s presidential pick for the November 2024 Presidential election former UK Prime Miniser Liz Truss was spotted.

She told Sky News that Trump was “defiant” and showed “strength and fortitude” after the attempt on his life. She also said Joe Biden was a “weak president”.

A graduate of Ohio State University with a degree in political science and philosophy he enrolled at Yale Law School in 2010 and was elected to the US Senate in the year 2022in 2003, he enlisted in the Marine Corps and served in Iraq as a corporal with the Public Affairs section of the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing Former Republican Party’s presidential candiate Vivek Ramaswamy endorsed his support for Vance.

Donald Trump made his pick for Vice President, selecting the 39-year-old JD Vance as his running mate on Monday. Trump confirmed Vance’s candidature through a post on his social media Truth Social.