How Iran Forced The Us Into Full Retreat | Scott Ritter

Added: 2026-05-16

[00:00:00]I think that's the main concern right now because an Israeli official source told CNN that the United States is seriously considering removing sanctions on Iran.

[00:00:11]And Israel is concerned about it. We have no choice. Well, I I I I love that they're seriously con- It's one of the demands that Iran's put down for conflict termination. Iran's not walking away with sanctions in place.

[00:00:25]That's not going to And remember, it's not like you know, Scott Bessent sitting there in his little desk going, "Sanction them. Sanction them." And there's no repercussions to America.

[00:00:35]Iran's got the world by the throat.

[00:00:38]Choking the world off.

[00:00:41]So, the United States can't sit there and say, "Well, we're going to delete We have to make a decision. We have to make a decision soon.

[00:00:48]And um and so, you know, this is where I think Iran, you know, has I love that meme they put out here.

[00:00:57]Donald Trump, you know, "America's holding all the cards." And so, the Iranians showed Donald Trump had a handful of but it's Uno cards where holding the cards is a bad thing. And the Iranians are sitting there with a smaller hand with all the good cards going, "Yeah." Um you know, so >> [laughter] >> you know, but that's the truth. The Iranians have the advantage here. Um there's no We proved Operation Freedom can't do anything. Do you understand how humiliating it is that we went to war against ourselves?

[00:01:23]That means we panicked.

[00:01:25]That means we have no impact. We have no ability to project power in there.

[00:01:29]The red, white, and blue uh shield that we put over the Strait of Hormuz was fictional, just like everything else we do is fictional.

[00:01:37]Um so, the United States is going to lift sanctions. And I think that's one of the things the Russians are telling them, the Chinese are telling them, that there can be no peace without the lifting of sanctions.

[00:01:49]And now, the United States is going to We always play stupid games. And so, we'll say, "Well, there's certain sanctions that are um in play that are linked to uh you know, terrorism. And if Iran continues to support Hezbollah and uh and the Houthi, then they're supporting terrorist entities and therefore these sanctions will stay in place. That's a bold statement to make while you're being choked off. So, um we'll see how long that lasts. I have a feeling that the Russians and the Chinese are saying no, it must be comprehensive that all um laws, all um you know, it's going to be tough for the United States, but at a minimum all international uh sanctions, United Nations sanctions have to be lifted. The United States needs to lift sanctions that are attached to the nuclear program, ballistic missiles.

[00:02:33]The the terrorism aspect of it, you need congressional consent. And so here we have a an issue right now uh cuz a lot of Republicans aren't uh inclined to support, you know, the total lifting of sanctions. And even if they were, um you know, the Democrats could drag this thing out until November and then, you know, we have a different reality. So, that's one of the areas I I think Iran is going to have to be frustrated with because there's certain political realities at play that that aren't conducive to the total lifting of sanctions, no matter how justified that is. Um you've got to be realistic.

[00:03:12]But the most important thing is the lifting of international sanctions.

[00:03:16]China's already shown that American secondary sanctions no longer frighten anybody.

[00:03:22]Um you know, they've just told the United States pound sand. Um if you if you sanction us, we sanction you back and it's total economic war and you can't win.

[00:03:30]Um and that's that's the truth. So, Iran, you know, I think gets by by having international sanctions lifted then diving into the SCO, diving into BRICS and uh and just hugging them so tight that the United States will never be able to separate them with any domestic legislation. And the Russians and Chinese will never again allow the United Nations to impose Security Council mandated sanctions. Um you know I think that's the future of Iran. It's a good future, by the way. I I I personally You and I You and I have had this talk before. I I I I I I I I I I think that's the future for Iran. I think the future isn't militancy, isn't aggression.

[00:04:09]Um I think the future is, you know, a decisive pivot to the east. Um now, your president's going to have to stop being in love with the west, and your foreign minister's going to have to stop being in love with the west, and a lot of Iranians are going to have to start falling out of love with the west. Um I don't mean to hate us, but um we're not the solution, we're the problem, especially as long as you have Europe the way it is and the United States the way it is. Uh it's fanciful thinking to uh to imagine uh in the near future a United States willing to do trade with uh Iran on an equitable basis. Um You can't trust us.

[00:04:46]We're liars. We lie about everything. We can't be trusted. And Europe's the same way. They're dysfunctional liars.

[00:04:53]The people who've been upfront and honest with the Iranians over time, especially recently, are the Russians and the Chinese.

[00:05:00]And I I I just I am continually flabbergasted that there's still an element within Iran, and I understand it cuz there's a significant Iranian diaspora here in the west, a lot of connectivity back and forth. Um but at some point in time, you know, even the Iranian diaspora has to recognize that the if you truly love Iran, the solution isn't anything imposed by the west. The solution is Iran pivoting to the global economic future of the world, which is in Asia.

[00:05:33]Scott, do you see any sort of false flag operation to sabotage everything? Because we had Naftali Bennett 2 days ago arguing that if the United States leaves the region, that's going to bring a new 9/11 to the United States.

[00:05:50]And I I No, I I don't I don't see that. Um No.

[00:05:59]I I don't I don't see it at all. There's I mean there may be an attempt, but the idea that that's going to trigger a repeat of a failed uh legacy. I mean, I know the United States is insane, you know, and Albert Einstein once or at least been attributed to him said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result.

[00:06:22]So, we had a 9/11 that got us involved in 20 years of global war on terrorism that we lost.

[00:06:28]Straight up lost. I know we killed a 57-year-old diabetic. Yay, Seal Team Six. You guys are so good. You rock, baby. Um you know, and we got Saddam Hussein hung by the neck until dead. Um you know, even though he had nothing to do with 9/11. Um you know, so But we just were humiliated in August of 2021 with the final withdrawal from Afghanistan.

[00:06:52]And the idea that we're you know, we're we've now just lost a war with Iran and we're going to be sucked back in because of some false flag attack.

[00:07:01]I don't see it. I don't see anybody falling for that.

[00:07:06]How do you see it, Scott, the future of the United States foreign policy when it comes to Israel and what Israel wants from the United States, which we know that these endless wars they literally wanted the United wanted the United States to fight each and every war in the Middle East and in the region for them.

[00:07:23]And it seems to me that Donald Trump is just the peak of what could have happened and it's not going to be the same way as it was as we've been witnessing with the Trump administration as time goes by in the United States.

[00:07:39]>> [snorts] >> Donald [clears throat] Trump's a political animal um and the game is survival.

[00:07:44]And you know, he he needed Miriam Adelson to get elected.

[00:07:49]So, he took her $200 million bribe.

[00:07:52]And he staffed his team with all the people that Miriam Adelson liked, especially Marco Rubio. And Secretary of State, she wanted him to be vice president. And this team, this golden team of Zionists uh have humiliated Donald Trump. Humiliated him. And this is a man who you know, is is vindictive as the day is long.

[00:08:16]If his political legacy is on the line and the threat that you know, exists that can you know, destroy this legacy comes from this various this this very Zionistic enterprise that he has empowered with Miriam Adelson's money.

[00:08:32]He'll drop that in a heartbeat. There is no loyalty in Donald Trump. None whatsoever. He has no obligations. It's all about power and um I think you'll see that he's going to divorce himself from the Zionists as quick as possible. And anybody who peeps gets fired. You know, heads will [clears throat] roll because of this war. Just people need to understand that. And it won't be Donald Trump's head.

[00:08:56]He's going to take Pete Hegseth is dead man walking. I don't know when it's going to happen, but it's going to happen soon because the man's just an embarrassment. You saw his testimony before the United States Congress.

[00:09:06]The guy is you know, hyped up on you know, some sort of testosterone induced cocaine substitute.

[00:09:13]How dare he speak to the United States Senate the way he did. I wish I had been a senator cuz I would have leaped out of the seats and punched him dead in front of the world. I'd go to jail for that gladly cuz he's a disgrace. This this Secretary of War.

[00:09:27]Why You know, he doesn't he doesn't have a right. He works for the American people.

[00:09:32]And he's up there arrogantly defending illegalities and you know, and he and he's not smart.

[00:09:39]He's just not a smart person at all.

[00:09:42]So his head will roll. I think Donald Trump's going to get rid of him as fast as possible. This will be Pete Hegseth's failure.

[00:09:50]Marco Rubio is a more difficult um you know aspect um you know he's he's combined national security advisor, secretary of state. It might be time to pull Rubio in um and you know relieve him of his uh national security advisor status, bring in somebody new um and leave Rubio with the with the secretary of state uh because I think that the dual headed also helped get us involved in this war. um You know Scott Bessent um again is a man who's just brought economic catastrophe.

[00:10:27]um and um he's also alienated the United States with China and it may you know we'll we'll see if Trump does have this meeting with Xi Jinping. I don't think Bessent comes out of this meeting looking very well. I think he's a humiliation to the United States. He's a detriment to Donald Trump's legacy and uh we may see his head roll too. And now suddenly you're you're sort of in a Zionist free zone. You've created a Zionist free vacuum and if you staff it with the right people um you're no longer doing Israel's bidding.

[00:10:57]And I think that's the that that's the direction we're heading. Donald Trump is a political animal. 60% of the United States population today views Israel as as bad juju. 59% view Netanyahu as bad juju. These are unprecedented numbers and it's only going to get worse. You know the American people unfortunately aren't moral we don't have a moral compass. I thought we did but we don't because we allowed genocide to take place and we allowed this illegal war of aggression to take place. You know the people aren't against the Iran war because it was the wrong thing to do or is against the law.

[00:11:29]They're against it because we lost and they're feeling the price of the the the pinch at the pump.

[00:11:34]You know, Bill Clinton knew this. So, that's why on his war room in 1992, um they had the uh the sticker, "It's the economy, stupid." Um it is the or 1991. It is the economy, stupid. Um 92, I guess. Um Got to remember which year election year cycle. But, that's what wakes America up. We don't have a moral compass. We just understand when it pinches us in the pocketbook. And right now, Israel is pinching us in the pocketbook. And so, goodbye, Israel. And I think that's what we're going to see. We're going to see a decoupling of the United States from Israel. I don't know how it is this sustainable, because now it comes down to a question of how quick Israel collapses. Um I I do think that Israel's going to be experiencing extreme economic difficulty in the not-so-distant future. And uh it's going to be so extreme as to promote depopulation. And as people flee Israel and go back to where they belong, which isn't Israel, um it you know, demographically becomes almost impossible to sustain the notion of a a Jewish homeland. So, you know, that's what what I think is the direction we're heading uh with Israel.

[00:12:44]Scott, we had two administration, the Biden administration, forcing Russia to react to somehow start, you know, to start a new war with the case of Ukraine.

[00:12:55]And again, the Trump administration doing the same, forcing Iran.

[00:12:59]Cuz we know, by the way, the two the two countries were trying so hard with Russia in 2021, December 2021, trying to do everything to negotiate with the United States and NATO.

[00:13:11]And we had the same case with Iranian case. They were negotiating two times while the United States was, you know, somehow you know, preparing behind the scene to attack, to do a surprise attack. The two countries were forced into these new positions that they're in.

[00:13:28]And he's that going to happen with the case of China as well?

[00:13:32]Because we had some sort of tariffs on China, but militarily is that going to happen again?

[00:13:39]We have no military power. What are you talking about?

[00:13:43]What do we got? We had theory.

[00:13:45]We had the theory that we were the most powerful blue water navy in the world.

[00:13:50]We had theory that our aircraft carriers would be able to project power in a way that could intimidate China.

[00:13:56]Or the US Air Force could do the the same.

[00:13:59]Um what the Chinese now know is that the US Navy is a paper tiger.

[00:14:07]Uh it'll get sunk before it gets anywhere near the Chinese coast and there's nothing the United States can do to stop that from happening. Um and they also now know that the air defense umbrella that's currently postured over Taiwan won't work. [clears throat] And that um you know all they have to do is take the Iranian game plan, saturate it with drones on day one, and the Chinese have a whole bunch of drones.

[00:14:29]Uh watch the depletion and come in with their uh sophisticated ballistic missiles, and in 3 days Taiwan is destroyed.

[00:14:36]Um that's the reality right now. And so the United States isn't going to militarily intimidate uh China. The other reality is that China can shut down the South China Sea and and choke off Japan and South Korea at will now.

[00:14:52]It's no longer a theoretical capacity.

[00:14:54]We now know the United States has no ability whatsoever to uh to to to you know seize control of the South China Seas from from China. Uh we also know that China can use proxies to shut down the Strait of Malacca perhaps, um Indonesian proxies. Uh another choke point. Um the you know the we're we're seeing literally um the end of an empire, the American empire. Um the the American empire was premised on control of the seas. You know, our blue water navy, we control.

[00:15:25]We were everywhere.

[00:15:26]Um, we can't control anything. And we just proved it. I mean, that's why this operation freedom defeat is such a a big deal because it proves the United States is just as impotent as the day is long.

[00:15:38]Um, so I don't think we have the same thing. And and now we get back to Russia. Um, you know, the the thing about Russia that people need to understand is that Vladimir Putin's been playing in in my mind um a brilliant game um that that happened because he made a mistake.

[00:16:00]He didn't make a mistake going into Ukraine, the special military operation.

[00:16:03]He had no choice. He was given no choice.

[00:16:06]Um, >> [gasps] >> the mistake was believing that Ukraine was agreement capable.

[00:16:15]Because the whole premise of the special military operation was to get Ukraine to the negotiating table quickly.

[00:16:21]It wasn't to take Kiev. It wasn't to do any of that stuff. It was to put pressure on Ukraine to have a negotiated end. And we saw that immediately after the conflict started, um, they began negotiating in Gomel in Belarus. After three or four rounds there, they ran off to Turkey and within a month or so they had an agreement.

[00:16:41]>> [laughter] >> And uh that would have been the end of that.

[00:16:44]That would have been a great Russian victory to get the agreement they wanted. Um, but they know the United States and Ukraine turned out to be in agree- agreement incapable. Um, and so the war escalated and Russia's been dealing with that escalation. People forget um, that when they started the special military operation, the Russians weren't looking at it a long-term conflict. Um, and so when you speak about an economic plan to deal with sanctions, they had a plan but Putin wasn't sure if that plan would work.

[00:17:19]I mean, people are like, "Why didn't he mobilize early on?" Well, gosh, I don't know why. Um because you didn't know if your economy was going to be um going through, you know, not just recession, but perhaps depression because of sanctions.

[00:17:31]Um you know, there was talk about 20% uh you know, a constriction of of Russia's economy.

[00:17:39]Turned out to be single digit. And then uh Russia turned right around and started having a growing economy. Um but, you know, Putin has been managing things. If Putin came in hard, um China may have found itself in a little bit more difficult position politically to uh to support that. Putin had to play um a game that was premised on, you know, that this wasn't a war, that it was a special military operation linked to legitimacies found under Article 51 of the United Nations Charter in terms of collective self-defense, preemptive in nature, all of which are cognizable claims. The Russians have law on their side, even though the West doesn't like to acknowledge it. Um but, he's had to manage this. He has to had to manage then the game-changing event where the United States and Western Europe, rather than acknowledging that Russia defeated the Ukrainians and pushing for, you know, a closure through a peace treaty, um doubled down and and started new lend-lease and started injecting tens of billions, hundreds of billions of dollars worth of military aid. Um and Russia found itself in [clears throat] a proxy conflict with the collective West. Now, how do you manage that? Um the first thing Russia had to do is take care of its strategic base. You know, all these people again are out there, Russia needed to do this, that, and the other thing. I don't know, maybe what Russia needed to do is expand their military from 900,000 to 1.6 million, so that the other fronts were now taken care of as you draw down resources to uh the special military operation. So, they rebuilt their military, which means they needed to activate defense industry. They're not just applying a war, you You they're in the process of equipping hundreds of thousands of troops that have brought into existence new military formations.

[00:19:17]Um, and they've done this. It's been ignored in the West, but they've done it. And now they've taken it up. I think they're going to 2.2 million. Expanding even more. Why? Because if you're going to fight the West, you need to have the capacity to do it. Um, they don't want to fight the West.

[00:19:33]They've avoided this.

[00:19:35]I think they're getting ready to fight the West. Um, this is the fatal mistake because as Russia has gotten stronger, Europe's gotten weaker.

[00:19:43]Uh, I mean, the Germans are indicative of this. 111 billion euros were allocated for, you know, defense military rehabilitation.

[00:19:53]Um, the Germans don't even know where it went. It's but it went into a into a money pit. And the German army's weaker today than they were when before they got that money. It's just It's It's amazing how weak the Germans are. Um, the French are weak. All of Europe's weak. They've got no military capacity at all. And yet they're sitting there flexing muscles that are premised on the notion of America backing them up. Well, that's over thanks to Iran. So now the United States, you know, is in a position where at best they're neutral about Europe. And at worst they're they're they're turning their backs on Europe. At the same time that Europe continues to play the escalation game.

[00:20:33]You have, you know, Britain and Germany building drones on behalf of Ukraine giving them to the Ukrainians so they can strike targets in the Russian strategic depth.

[00:20:43]And you now have Poland and the Baltic nations providing a corridor through their territory so that drones can get to to St. Petersburg. You have the same thing happening where drones are transiting Kazakhstan to get into the Russian strategic depth. Um, and they're hitting then they're starting to have an impact on Russia's energy sector. I mean, a strategic impact on Russia's energy sector. This is unsustainable.

[00:21:06]And so Russia now is going to be compelled to take action. It will be decisive in nature when it occurs. It will not be, you know, giving giving Europe a chance to match escalation with escalation. They will come in hard. Um and I think the first thing they're going to do is take out Kiev.

[00:21:24]Um you know, unprecedented the Russian military said evacuate the city. If you remember when when the Russians unveiled the Aresenic missile, um they said, you know, this missile is horrible. If we use it, uh it'll take, you know, have the equivalent of a nuclear weapon in terms of the devastation that will occur. Um but the Russians said, you know, we would obviously give uh civilian populations advanced notice.

[00:21:51]Um and they never did.

[00:21:53]Cuz they never used it against the Ministry of Defense come out. They didn't say you should think about. They said evacuate.

[00:22:01]Evacuate. No options.

[00:22:03]All civilians must evacuate. All diplomatic staff must evacuate.

[00:22:08]Because if the Ukrainian attack us, we're going to take out Kiev with ballistic missiles.

[00:22:14]Um and may and I think we're going to find that Russia has missiles besides Aresenic.

[00:22:20]Um and it's going to be absolutely devastating for Ukraine. But that's what needs to be done.

[00:22:25]On the battlefield, you know, the Ukrainians, let's you know, people don't think about how these things happen. But the Ukrainians of course now have almost exclusively focused their their mobilization on creating drone units. So they're you know, they want to bring in women for drone units and all this stuff. Where are they getting their drones? These these first-person view drones.

[00:22:46]Um They're making them at home.

[00:22:49]Now, but they're not making them in big factories.

[00:22:52]What the Ukrainians have done is they've taken these components and they housewives [snorts] are building components. And so they've taken drone manufacturing and they've put it throughout the civilian infrastructure.

[00:23:05]And as a result, they're able to produce, you know, tens of thousands of drones in a day.

[00:23:12]Um and now and so now these new drone units come in and they've changed the reality of the battlefield. Russia's still advancing, but it's slower. This the concept of maneuver warfare, um you're not maneuvering anywhere with that many drones. Now Russia has a counter for it.

[00:23:27]They've created a unit called Rubicon.

[00:23:29]Um and Rubicon, you know, they were 5,000, might be 15,000 strong now. Specialist counter drone capability. So when the Ukrainians seek to um you know, overlay their their new drone capacity on the battlefield to change the dynamic, Rubicon comes in and starts killing everybody. And um eventually they they drive them back, but in the meantime, uh they've made life hell uh for Russian soldiers. Uh the Russians can't have the amount of maneuver capacity up front because the drones are taking it out. So the Russians are compelled to thin their lines. They have a handful of men at the front line um who are able to hide and avoid these drones, but that creates opportunities for Ukrainians to counterattack. And so they counterattack, they seize some territory that's designed to be seized. The Russians have built this in. Then the Russians bring in Rubicon and their own maneuver capability and push the Ukrainians back and kill a lot of people. But it's created a different dynamic that people um in the west are saying, "Oh, the Ukrainians have fought the Russians to a standstill." No, they haven't uh because they're losing men at an unsustainable level. But you know, we we've got this taking place. The Russians now recognize, again, one of the thing that Vladimir Putin has avoided is um taking casualties. But I think the Russians will recognize that at the moment you decapitate Ukrainian leadership, you have to come in and go for the kill on the battlefield.

[00:24:52]And um I think you're going to see the kind of decisive push that hasn't happened because the Russians are going to be willing to absorb the casualties to break through the drone zone and then kill everybody. Um so I think, you know, we're looking at a very decisive summer coming up this summer the summer of 2026 um and that the United States is going to let this happen.

[00:25:14]Uh because the United States blames Zelenskyy for the deadlock. Um and the United States is also embitered about about Europe and how they've sustained the war and prevented peace from happening. So I think we're at a state right now that um the United States will acknowledge that uh Europe has, you know, become involved in this conflict to an extent that's unjustifiable and that Russia has every right to defend itself. And the United States will give Russia a window of opportunity to inflict maximum damage and uh bring an end to this conflict. Um it won't be the United States working with Europe to uh come up with a deal that puts Russia in a bad place. It'll be the strategic defeat of Europe and Ukraine and the United States sitting back there going, "You brought it on yourselves."

[00:25:59]Um the war needs to end on terms acceptable to Russia.

[00:26:03]And uh and in exchange for that, Russia will help bring an end to the conflict um with Iran. Um I think Russia will play a very important role in the uh in the nuclear side, but also in the finance side, the lifting of sanctions because Russia will offer Iran incentives not to insist on, you know, the United States rewriting this legal code because that's not going to happen.

[00:26:25]But do you see uh at the end of the war in Ukraine, are they going to have Odessa or they're going to lose Odessa?

[00:26:38]Ukrainians. Yeah, yeah, yeah, I Cuz it's so important. It it's it's a tough one because um emotionally, I think the Russians want Odessa.

[00:26:55]Emotionally.

[00:26:57]Strategically, it depends.

[00:27:00]It depends what happens.

[00:27:02]Look, we'll know in a couple days. We'll know on May 10th or 11th if if Ukraine exists as a modern nation-state. As I said, I pray that they attack Russia on May 9th. I pray they do because that solves everything.

[00:27:15]Because I I I think people in Europe are thinking Russia's bluffing. I don't think Russia's bluffing. And I think that'll be the end of Zelensky, the end of the Ukrainian government, and the attack will be so devastating they'll break the will of Ukraine to fight. And when that happens, you'll see a collapse of the front. And if Russia has indeed created the reserves that some people say, there may be the ability to exploit that collapse and make a push and resolve the Odessa issue. Um and you can resolve Odessa not by seizing the city, um but by surrounding the city, cutting the city off, and um and and then as part of the peace is that Russia is given the city. I don't know. I don't know how this is going to play out. Um because it's it's it's a problem fraught with political consequence. Um it depends on how successful Russia is in this in this potential push. Um but I look, I you know, I'm I'm I say friends.

[00:28:07]I'm friendly with uh Well, I can say friends with Andrey Illarionov. I like the guy. I think he likes me, so we can call ourselves friends. Um Sergey Karaganov, we've we've met and talked. Um I respect him.

[00:28:20]Um I I don't know if I'm up in his friend uh I don't think I'm in his circle of trust yet. But um I listen to the guy. Um and he's he's influential.

[00:28:30]You know, these people have always had a relatively hard line. Um but there's it's always been a hard line tempered by political reality.

[00:28:39]But I think there's a growing recognition that the political reality has changed. You can no longer talk about Russian-European relations using data that's 2 years old. Uh and that's what everybody including myself has been doing. I've been, you know, talking about, you know, how Russia relates with Europe and and and NATO using, you know, 2024 as the um as the benchmark.

[00:29:02]Um the things have changed strategically. The harm that's being done to the Russian economy by uh Ukrainian long-range drone strikes has um has liberated the Pentagon in many ways because again, a lot of decisions aren't made because um there's there's there's alternatives, you know, at least in in theory. There are no alternatives now. For this to continue will bring about, you know, fatal, potentially fatal harm to Russia.

[00:29:31]So, Russia has no choice.

[00:29:33]And Karaganov is talking about that. So, I I honestly believe that we're going to see some very decisive action very soon.

[00:29:40]The Russia's been preparing for this. Um and when it happens, it will shock the hell out of everybody. Uh it will be shocking uh what happens to Kiev. It'll be shocking what happens to some European targets as well. Um you know, pro hint, if you're producing drone parts for the Flamingo 5, um you might want to not show up for work ever again because that factory's probably going to disappear. Whether that factory is in the United Kingdom, in Denmark, in Germany, it's going to go. Um as it should. I mean, and then Russia's going to dare Europe to do anything about it.

[00:30:14]And Russia, believe me, if they make this decision, then Russia's ready to take it to the the next level. Europe's not. I don't think Europe's ready to commit nuclear suicide. Uh but when you confront Russia with crises of existential proportions, Russia will respond accordingly. And that's the stupidity of what the Ukrainians and their British and German allies have been doing. Not recognizing the reality of Ukraine's inevitable defeat, trying to create a you know a a situation that gives him temporary propaganda points. We're hurting the Russians. Yes, you are.

[00:30:52]And now you're going to find out what happens when you hurt the Russians.

[00:30:55]And um it'll be fatal for Ukraine.

[00:30:58]Um I'm not unhappy about that. I I'm I'm sorry for the Ukrainian people, but hey, we're 4 plus years into a war that you know you're you're you're governed by Bandera's and you you know Ukrainian Nazi thugs. Um and you're doing nothing about it. Uh you're watching your men get dragged off and you're doing nothing about it. You have it you don't have the gumption to rise up and take matters into your own hands. So, you you have lost the right to exist as a modern nation-state. And so, Russia will terminate Ukraine. I personally believe that that is what's going to happen.

[00:31:30]Uh it'll be the war that had Russia fought it, you know, cuz I maybe I'm overly sensitive to this, but you know, it was like, "Scott, you said the war was going to be over in a week."

[00:31:38]It would have been had Russia gone to war.

[00:31:42]That's what everybody forgets. Russia didn't go to war. I thought they were going to war. Did you think they were going to war? I think most people thought they were going to war. When they came across, we're like, "That's a lot of tanks. Russia's going to war."

[00:31:53]But they weren't. It was a special military operation, which confused us because we had never heard that term before. I've been studying Russian military art forever. I didn't know what a special military operation was.

[00:32:04]I found out. And then you realize the genius of what the Russians were doing, trying to get them to the negotiating table, and you realized it was working.

[00:32:10]So, their plan worked.

[00:32:13]What they didn't factor in the to account was the fact that the the West's agreement incapable.

[00:32:19]Um and the West was seeking um the permanent demise of Russia.

[00:32:24]You you had remember Lloyd Austin.

[00:32:27]We we want to destroy Russia.

[00:32:29]Biden, kill Putin.

[00:32:33]I said and and it and it took Russia I mean cuz that was those were statements made in the summer of 2022.

[00:32:41]It's taken Russia 4 years to to finally recognize that those threats were serious.

[00:32:47]And that's ultimate objective of Europe is to kill Russia.

[00:32:51]So, now that you've told Russia you want to kill them, uh don't be surprised when Russia kills you first. And I think that's the direction we're heading.

[00:33:02]Thank you so much, Scott, for being with us today.

[00:33:05]Great pleasure, as always.

[00:33:07]Uh thank you. And if I could just uh make a quick uh statement.

[00:33:11]>> Um you know, as I said, uh you know, a lot of analysis that's going on today about Russia's um founded in data that's more than 2 years old. I uh you know, I in 2023, 2024, I took some very serious trips into Russia where I visited 16 cities. I didn't just simply go to Moscow and St. Petersburg. I went everywhere, including the special military operation. And um you know, I got to interview three of the five governors that were that are involved in this and meet military leaders and meet the people and talk and I and that shaped my perception of Russian reality. Um yes, I've gone back four times since then, but those trips have been limited to Moscow and St. Petersburg, and there you get caught up in the political bubble of those two cities.

[00:34:02]It's time to go in refresh the database.

[00:34:06]And I will be going back to Russia for a significant trip uh to refresh the database and um you know, so that, you know, I can update the Russian reality, not just for myself, but for for you. I mean, you know, wouldn't you like it if I came on and talked to you that I I was not relying on a 2024 database, but I was going with a 2026 database? Um and so, if people think there's value to this, uh understand I'm an independent journalist. I I can only do this with the support of um, of you. Um, go to scottitter.com. It's my uh, it's my my my website. You get to uh, the substack.

[00:34:42]The substack's free, by the way. You can subscribe for free and gain access to everything. Um, but if you subscribe to the substack, you're paying my salary.

[00:34:50]That means that you're paying the electric bill here. You're paying You're putting a roof over my head. Uh, you're paying for the food that feeds my dogs so they can bark in the middle of a podcast. Um, that's that's the salary aspect of it.

[00:35:01]The trips are funded by donations. And there's a donation button there. And the trips only happen if um, if people go and and and and and donate.

[00:35:10]And this is a substantial trip um, that is uh, I pay for everything. I pay for airfare.

[00:35:17]I pay for hotels. I pay for food. I pay for um, car transportation in country. I pay for the studios, the the videographers, the uh, sound technicians, the interpreters, the producers, the editors. I pay for it all because when you have 40 FBI agents kick down your door and come in your house and accuse you of being a Russian agent, uh, you can't give them any opportunity to say, "Oh, you've taken something from the Russians." Um, there's a lot of people out there saying I'm Putin's puppet. Far from it. Um, totally self-financed or totally financed with the uh, donations that people provide.

[00:35:52]So, uh, I would just ask that if you if you could support this, it would be um, it would be very helpful. It's a The trip's going to happen. But um, you know, the trip gets enhanced with the more uh, the more I'm able to do, the more enhanced the trip is. And when I say do, remember I have to if I want to interview some some people that are relevant, I need a studio.

[00:36:15]Um, because I don't use other people's studios. I need to rent a studio.

[00:36:19]They're expensive. I need to hire interpreters and the whole technical team. Um, so I have a number of people I want to interview. I have places I want to go.

[00:36:27]Um some of these places will require security.

[00:36:30]Got to pay for that. Uh cuz if it's given then you the people say, "Oh, well, you're you're receiving." So, that's what I would ask. The other thing is um this Iran war is going to end.

[00:36:42]And um I'm going to Iran.

[00:36:44]Just to let you know.

[00:36:45]It's going to happen.

[00:36:47]Um and um again though I have to be careful about going to Iran. Um you know, in the perception of um being a uh tool of the Iranian government. I mean, once you're in Iran you are of course, you know, hostage to the whim of the Iranian government. You only get to go where they want you to go. Um I'm hoping that they'll like the plan that I put forward and allow me to do some or most of what I wanted to do. But, I have to pay for everything. Um because otherwise I'm just a tool of the Iranian government.

[00:37:18]I'll get 40 more FBI agents into my home. Um so, your donations um are not just funding a Russian trip, they're also creating the potential for uh an Iranian trip sometime in the near future. Again, this war has to end. I I I can't go over there while my country is in a uh in a state of war. Um but, once this war ends it's imperative that the Iranian reality be captured.

[00:37:42]And as you know, Iran's transformed itself dramatically in the last couple months. Whatever you thought you knew about Iran, you don't know about anymore. It's a new country. It's a new a new reality that needs to be captured and understood. Um and so, any support that people provide and then lastly, support all your independent journalists. Support Nima um by hitting the like button or hitting whatever button by donating. Um that's the only way this happens. This interview wouldn't happen unless he was here doing it and he can't do it uh unless you help sustain it. It's the same thing with for all the other independent journalists out there.

[00:38:14]This is an important time. We are we just spent better part of an hour and 11 minutes talking about issues that you're in a way that you're not going to hear it on mainstream media. They just don't talk about it. You get lied to on mainstream media. Um, you don't have to agree with me, but at least understand that the discussion Nima and I are having generate debate, dialogue, and discussion. We're injecting new concepts in there for people to chew on. Um, broaden your horizons, broaden your perspectives. Um, this doesn't happen free. There are no corporate sponsors out there underwriting this. It only is underwritten by the support of you, the audience. So, I would just make the pitch also to support Nima, support all the other independent actors out there uh because now more than ever we need this. This is this is Information is power. And um if you're prisoner to information provided by corporate media, you're sort of held hostage.

[00:39:05]Yeah.

[00:39:06]Just just to mention because many of our audience are asking how they can help you. Here is in the scottritter.com, you see the donation tab. You can go and donate there or you can subscribe to his Substack.

[00:39:19]And this is the way to to help Scott Ritter.

[00:39:23]Yeah. And and you also help honest by watching and um and helping Nima. I mean, I'm I'm here today talking because you exist.

[00:39:32]Um, otherwise I'd be speaking into a a black hole. Um, so they need to support you as well. You support me by supporting you. Um, you support him by supporting me. Um, you know, that's the beauty of this. We We've talked for some time now about the family of podcasts because there there is a tight little group of people that you know, that that that that move around Judge Napolitano, Danny Haiphong, uh Garland Nixon, and others. Um, you know, in in in we all contribute in our own way. Um, Danny Davis is out there. Um, support these people. Support these people. Keep them functioning cuz we need it. Um, we we shouldn't just be viable during conflict. People need to understand that when nations are at war, that means that everybody failed.

[00:40:19]That means that humanity failed.

[00:40:21]We are viable when through our dialogue we can prevent wars, we prevent conflicts, and we can only prevent conflicts if we can convince enough people that war isn't necessary. Um and so even though the conflict's coming to an end, that doesn't mean that you wipe your brow and say, "Well, we dodged that bullet." No, there's another conflict on the horizon that needs to be stopped through dialogue. Um that's why I like the name of your your program.

[00:40:48]And dialogue works, but uh it does. It dialogue is great. And so um anyways, I think I've I'm I'm on repetitive mode right now, but none of this happens without the support of the audience. That's the bottom line.