Wilbur Ross: Iran’s move has demonstrated to China and Russia the strength of the US military
China and Russia have been noticeably absent from the conflict in the Middle East, after the United States and Israel launched joint attacks on Iran over the weekend. Both Russia and China condemned the military action that led to the killing of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, but did not offer any support to their ally except verbal statements. Moreover, Iran should not expect any of the world powers to come to its aid, said former Trump administration Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross.
Ross, who served during Trump’s first administration, believes the president’s military campaign in Iran has been a relative success so far, with key objectives likely to be achieved within the next month or so. More importantly, the demonstration showed global competitors just how effective the U.S. military is.
Talk exclusively with luckIran “is going at least as well as anyone had hoped,” Ross said, adding that he was “fascinated” by the fact that China and Russia had offered no intervention other than statements. An invasion of the region by either side is highly unlikely, he said, “so the most they can do is provide equipment or financing.”
However, “Russia is not in a position to provide support to Iran. As for China, it is not clear to me – other than trying to somehow continue its support for Iran.” Source of energy and oil supply– I do not see that China has a major vital interest in Iran in any case.
Has Iran then served as a litmus test for further escalation of geopolitical tensions between East and West?
“This is a very complex question in many ways,” Minister Ross said. “One of the most interesting aspects of the whole thing with respect to China is…as far as I can tell, no one at the highest levels of Chinese military decision-making has ever been involved in a war.”
In fact, the Chinese military leadership has witnessed major turmoil this year alone. In January, he met with Chinese General Zhang Yuxia. He was removed from his position Along with another senior officer, General Liu Zhenli. Zhang and Zhenli are reportedly under investigation, facing allegations of “serious violations of discipline and law.”
Anti-corruption campaign Continue after a month When nine military officials were removed from the ranks of Chinese lawmakers, in March, Three retired generals were removed From the country’s highest political advisory council, the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference.
“The last time (China) was involved in an actual shooting war was in Vietnam,” Ross added. “They couldn’t take advantage of Vietnam’s weakness, so it wasn’t an impressive performance on their part.”
Turning to Russia, Ross believes that President Putin has had enough of the war in Ukraine without adding another foreign front to his agenda. Ross added: “I think Russia’s ability to launch a real attack anywhere has become very limited.” Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Putin’s forces have suffered 1.2 million deaths, according to United Nations figures. Center for Strategic and International Studies.
“I’ve been told that more than 40 percent of the entire economy is tied to the war in Ukraine,” Ross said. “So this is not a big economy, and theirs was not a very big economy to begin with.”
Put it all together
Between the strikes by Iran and Venezuela earlier this year, Ross believes the United States – at least in terms of military power – has an increasingly stronger hand. “One of the strange things is that the US military now has more up-to-date experience and successful experience – between what we did in Venezuela and what’s happening in Iran – than anyone else,” he said. “We’ve had some very successful tests of some of our advanced weapons. And from a military standpoint, I think that has made the United States stronger compared to both China and Russia.”
While optimistic arguments about US military power might stand the country in good stead on the international stage, economists, from Paul Donovan of UBS to Jamie Dimon of JPMorgan, have been careful to acknowledge the humanitarian cost of the measure. The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency puts the total number of reported civilian deaths at 1,097, including 181 children under the age of 10.
Homes and businesses are also destroyed Through the exchange of fire – in both Iran and neighboring countries They were subjected to retaliatory strikes. An oil refinery in Saudi Arabia was reportedly bombed, as well as an attack on the US Embassy in Riyadh. This weekend, an airstrike on the Fairmont The Palm hotel in Dubai sparked a fire and spread panic on the famous man-made island of Palm Jumeirah, where many of the city’s wealthiest residents live. Smoke was also seen near Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, after an apparent drone was intercepted and exploded. In nearby Abu Dhabi, the debris of another drone crashed into the Etihad Towers. Kuwait City International Airport was also attacked by a drone.
The consequences of conflict are also likely to be inflationary, especially if the trade routes on which the oil sector and the broader energy industry rely are disrupted.
Ross acknowledged the costs, including loss of life, adding that he did not expect military action to continue: “Our systems and the Israeli system have proven to be very effective, so I think we have real proof of who the military force really is.”
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