'They Won't Do That': Trump Rejected Vance's Plan For Indian Troops In Ukraine, Claims Book

Last Updated:June 23, 2026, 23:26 IST

Book Regime Change claims US Vice President JD Vance proposed India send troops to Ukraine in 2025, but Donald Trump rejected the idea.

US Vice President had last year proposed India to send troops to Ukraine as part of a peacekeeping mission amid the ongoing war with Russia, according to a book by New York Times journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan.

The book, titled “Regime Change: Inside the Imperial Presidency of Donald Trump", focused on the first 14 months of US President Donald Trump’s second term in office.

It stated that just after 10 days of Trump’s inauguration, Vance wanted India to send troops to Ukraine but Trump laughed at him. “The Indians won’t do that. They won’t pay for something like that," Trump told Vance.

Hindustan Times cited the book stating that retired Army Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg, whom Trump appointed as special presidential envoy for Ukraine and Russia, held a meeting in the Oval Office 10 days after the inauguration.

During the discussion, Kellogg presented a proposal titled “An America First Plan: Trump’s Historic Peace Deal for Russia-Ukraine War". The proposal stated that the US would not formally recognise Russia’s claims over occupied Ukrainian territory but Kyiv would not attempt to regain the lost territory through military action.

The meeting was reportedly attended by President Trump, Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

At this point, Vance flagged concerns over using NATO troops while arguing that this might provoke Russia and increase the risk of drawing the US into the conflict.

Vance then asked, “Are there troops from other countries that could serve this purpose?" When Waltz suggested troops from countries outside Europe, Vance reportedly suggested Saudi Arabia or India to which “Trump chuckled", the book stated.

The authors write that Trump responded by saying, “The Indians won’t do that. They won’t pay for something like that."

He also pointed out his good relation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “Prime Minister Modi really liked him and wanted to visit," Trump said, “but the Indians do not ever pay for anything", according to the book.

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