Vice President JD Vance has opted not to disclose his private discussions with President Donald Trump concerning the ongoing conflict between the United States and Iran, citing potential legal repercussions if he were to do so.

At 41, Vance has long advocated against war, drawing from his own experiences as a Marine during the Iraq conflict.

However, as the conflict with Iran stretches into its third week, Vance, who is usually active on social media, has noticeably reduced his online presence. Notably, he has refrained from characterizing Operation Epic Fury as a war, a term President Trump has used frequently.

President Trump has acknowledged that Vance is “less enthusiastic” about the conflict, noting a philosophical divergence between them. A Politico report on Friday highlighted Vance’s initial skepticism regarding the operation before it was launched.

When a reporter questioned Vance on Friday about his conversations with the President concerning the war, Vance stated he couldn’t reveal details, indicating that such discussions are classified, or so he claims.

“I hate to disappoint you, but I will not stand here before everyone and disclose what I said in the classified room,” Vance replied, underscoring the confidentiality of their discussions.

‘Partially because I don’t want to go to prison, and partially because I think it’s important for the president of the United States to talk to his advisors without those advisers running their mouth to the American media,’ the VP said, receiving loud applause from the audience. 

The Republican stressed the importance of keeping high-level conversations with the President and his top advisors private to avoid operational security breaches. 

Vice President JD Vance joked on Friday that he won’t disclose his private conversations with the President about Iran publicly because he wants to avoid going to prison

The President has admitted that he and Vance differ ‘philosophically’ on the Iran war 

He joked that he can’t bring a pair of headphones into the Situation Room, let alone blab on the classified conversations outside. 

‘When you’re thinking about a major decision like this, the way the President makes these decisions is he talks to a lot of people. Obviously we’re thinking about various ins and outs, various options, what this looks like, how to accomplish our goals, what our goals should be.’

‘And I think it’s important for the President of the United States to be able to have that conversation with his team, without his team, then running their mouths to the American media,’ he continued. ‘So part of what makes our national security team so cohesive is that we all trust each other, and we all have a very free exchange of ideas. I’d like to keep that going.’ 

Vance is ‘worried about success’, a senior administration official confirmed just days after Donald Trump admitted on stage that the Vice President had been ‘less enthusiastic’ about the US-Israeli strikes than other cabinet members.

Vance ‘just opposes’ the war and remains ‘skeptical’, a senior official said, while a second told Politico he had offered ‘a different point of view’ but has since fallen in line. ‘Once the decision has been made, he’s fully on board,’ the official said. 

Vance pushed for swift, decisive action to minimize casualties, sources said. 

He pressed Chairman of the Joint Chiefs General Dan Caine and CIA Director John Ratcliffe at a meeting ahead of the strikes, questioning them on the risks and complexities. 

He is now walking a tightrope in public as daylight emerges between himself and Trump for the first time. 

Black smoke rises after an airstrike as Iranians take part in the Al-Quds (Jerusalem) Day rally, a commemoration in support of the Palestinian people on the last Friday of the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, in Tehran on March 13

Then-Senator Vance, an Iraq war veteran, backed Trump’s second term in a 2023 op-ed, writing in the Wall Street Journal that ‘he won’t recklessly send Americans to fight wars overseas.’

Vance told Fox News on March 2 that Trump would not allow the US ‘to get into a multiyear conflict with no clear end in sight and no clear objective.’

He said the war would not end until Trump ‘accomplishes that all-important objective of ensuring that Iran can’t have a nuclear weapon.’ 

Trump’s stated aims had initially been unclear, vindicating some of Vance’s privately expressed concerns, as he called on Iranians to rise up and overthrow the regime.