I sat down with Jim Sciutto on CNN to break down the shifting dynamics of Russia’s war in Ukraine—specifically how North Korea, China, and Iran are cementing their support for Moscow, and why Europe is struggling to fill Ukraine’s desperate gap in air defenses.
Here are the four key strategic points from our discussion:
The “Axis” in Practice: While Russia started this illegal invasion, countries like Iran, China, and North Korea are consistently aiding Moscow for their own strategic reasons. China wants Western forces occupied in Europe so they can’t focus on East Asia; North Korea wants to align firmly with anti-Western powers.
The Personal Diplomacy Fallacy: President Trump may believe Kim Jong-Un respects him, but Kim’s actions show where his true colors lie. Dictators align behind hard national interests and power blocs, not personal rapport or past flattery.
Why Strategic Bombing Fails: Russia is launching ballistic missile strikes against civilian and energy targets because Ukraine is facing a critical shortage of interceptors like the Patriot system. But history—from World War II to modern conflicts—shows that strategic terror bombing fails to break a nation’s resolve.
Europe’s Strategic Hesitancy: European nations are torn between sending their remaining interceptor stocks to Ukraine today or hoarding them for fear of a direct Russian attack on NATO tomorrow. My view? It is far better to help Ukraine succeed now than to save resources for a day when Ukraine has fallen.