Will you die if you don’t eat veggies - of course not. But your question was about optimal health. We all fall somewhere on the sliding scale of optimal health to death and veggies in a diet push you closer to optimal health. If you’re conscious of the fact that you don’t like veggies and lack them in your diet you can certainly do things to counteract that but there’s no true substitute for the real thing. Will it make a significant difference in your health? Probably not, if you have an otherwise healthy diet and lifestyle. But I would encourage you to continue to eat veggies that you like and experiment with others - sometimes different methods of preparation make them more appealing.
strictly speaking no, most of their nutrients are either unnecessary (or, at best, don’t have proven benefits) or can be found in better amounts elsewhere. vegetables are interesting in the diet to add variety and because they are not calorie-dense
The single biggest benefit of fruits & vegetables are polyphenols, antioxidants & fiber. Most plant based vitamins are poorly absorbed. Meat, Fruits and veggies are the way to go.
Your veggie stack should contain a gamut of cruciferous veggies & salads. High fiber low sugary fruits are also a go.
The above episode is about the carnivore diet. This is not a real full answer (because the point of the podcast is not to offer nutrition advice but rather to “debunk” nutrition fads or attitudes about dieting) but I may go do some reading of current research later if I have time. Their points about the Inuit dietary traditions may offer something interesting here though.
There is also this podcast episode (linked below) in which Zoe Harcombe suggests that vegetables aren’t necessary. She has a PhD and self-proclaims that she is a whiz at research methods and reading research. I have to say though, I have some pause about her and her message. Academics are also just people with their own biases. I never feel as good as when I eat a lot of vegetables.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLZWPAWi7tg
Again, I’m taking none of these at face value and may do some of my own research later, but you may find them interesting.