Former Gov. Gilmore talks Middle East and Ukraine Conflicts

All right, it's 903 this morning on Richmond's morning news. This is News Radio WRVA. My name is Rich, Rich Herrera, and we always have the pleasure of speaking with Governor Jim Gilmore on Thursday mornings. He's joining us right now. Governor, good morning. Good morning. Thanks for the chance to come back. Oh, absolutely. I always appreciate this. Let's talk about what we see in the Middle East right now. And again, I know that the... What's going on in Iran has worldwide ramification. We also have to look at what's going on with Ukraine and in Russia right now. And then you've got China over there, I'm in Taiwan. But let's start with Iran right now. We're seeing the president saying, okay, this MOU didn't work, you negotiate, you agree to a deal at the table, then you come back, ah, we can't do that. And he says, okay, that's it. You're firing on ships. This thing's going to go back to being a live firefight. What are you seeing right now? What are you hearing? Well, the memorandum of understanding was not a good document, and it appeared that the Iranians were really in charge of this negotiation with that memorandum of understanding. The thing that stood out for me with that was the agreement that Iran would not charge tolls for ships going through the Strait of Hormuz for 60 days. Well, of course, what that means is that's an implication that their partner in the memorandum, which is the United States, was agreeing that after 60 days, they would be in charge. In fact, they were in charge during the 60 days. They just wouldn't charge tolls. So that was a very problem, problematic, I think, part of that. And then, of course, what has happened is that I think that the United States is say, well, actually, we don't like that development. So we're going to start to try to move these ships out, and they were attacked and continue to be attacked. And so now the blockade has been imposed and the memorandum has been thrown overboard. And we're back to that again. I think the real problem that I see with this, and I'll come to the point very quickly, is that you can't move geographically Iran. There are people who have written many things about the fact that geography controls a lot of things in international relations. Well, Iran's there. then they're not going away. How long can the United States Navy stay there and do a blockade? How long can the United States Navy escort ships? And the answer is it's expensive. And it diverts resources, military resources, ships and attention away from the more critical areas that are confronting the United States. And those critical areas are Ukraine and Taiwan. So soon or later, we're going to have to keep our attention on those two things. But meanwhile, the Middle East goes to the question of energy supplies. Now, the U.S. has got energy, as the president has said, but the world market doesn't. And so when you squeeze things coming through the Middle East, that causes gas prices to go up. And that includes in the United States because we're not throwing our oil in increased measures into the world market.

Okay. So these are the problems that we're facing right now. Okay. Now, on the other hand, I think this also takes the front page. Obviously, it's a shooting war with the United States Navy now beginning to escort. They're going to start escorting ships through the strait to try to get the freedom of navigation, which is something that U.S. Navy has been projecting for since its inception. Now, I also have been noticing, and this is kind of like page three, page four of everything going on right now. that Ukraine is firing and attacking further inside Russia than any thought when all of this started during the Biden administration, the fact that it seems like Ukraine is now picked up momentum. I'm not sure where the lines are because it's a little bit of a different war with the drones and all the rest of that, but the fact that they're actually firing into the heart of Russia. And Vladimir Putin doesn't know what's going on. I keep seeing more people speaking out, like, what is going on? How in the world can Mother Russia actually have somebody like Ukraine strike us inside our own homeland? Well, just two sentences about Iran, and then I'll come directly to my favorite topic, which, of course, is Europe. But, you know, with respect to Iran, just to be real about what's playing out. We'll talk about it again next week. The United States is operating on the theory that complete use of force is going to resolve this. And that's why the bombing is going on. That's why the president is saying what he's saying. And the question is, can Iran be, in fact, brought to heal? strictly with bombing. That, I think, is the only theory that the U.S. now has remaining to it. And that's why he's doing what he's doing. Let's review that again next week. Now, with respect to Europe. Can I jump in for just one second? Because I also see, next to Kargai, there's a couple islands that the Iranians consider to be their aircraft carriers, like you said, they're stationary. Those have been taken out. And I also noticed that Scott Bessent has turned back up the heat financially on Iran. But I think... You're 100% right. It's going to be, can we bring them to heal, to have the fear enough to have real negotiations, and that's going to be done through the U.S. military. So it just seems like we're, again, I keep emphasizing this. We're dealing with people that have a different point of view and a different culture than we do and have different values than we do, and it's hard to align when you don't line up that way. Well, it very well may be that the American theory at this point is we have to change the government there. That's what I've said all along, that you've got to really get regime change. Well, you can't get that usually until you invade with an army, which we're not going to do. So the question is, can you do that strictly with bombing bridges, taking out things? And, of course, those things may be a violation of international law.

So we have a larger issue about whether international law is applying at this point in the world crisis that we're in. I believe in international law and think that bad players like Iran have to adhere to it. But at the same time, that's up in the air. Now, over in Ukraine, you introduced that topic. You know, Rich, and your listeners know, I've been talking about this since I got back from Vienna in 2021. And since I visited Ukraine in 2021 and talked over with those people what they were going to do before the Russian onslaught. Well, look, the way this hand is now playing out is that the Ukrainians have developed the ability and the capacity to attack the energy resources of Russia, and they are doing it. And the entire country of Russia is under attack. Their refining capability is under attack. Secondly, their supply lines into Crimea and into their supply lines in eastern Ukraine are under attack. Their trucks are burning on the roads. They're not able to supply their soldiers. So at this point, the worm has turned. The things have turned in Ukraine. Ukraine, I've said actually from the very beginning that I thought Ukraine was going to tough this out and win this war. They're no longer toughen out this war. They're on the move. I think they're going to win this war. Now, the other problem we've got is that there's serious danger here that Vladimir Putin, with his back to the wall, will do something radical. We have to keep a high on that also. But one last point, now I'll let you. The last point is that the NATO conference that was just held in Ankara Turkey, you may have noticed that President Trump changed 180 degrees, and he was very generous towards Volodymyr Zelensky. He was very generous towards the Ukrainian people and what the Ukrainian people have been through with this onslaught. Things reversed. And frankly, I thought that that was a very good development for NATO. Now, NATO still has to step up to the plate and do its job. The president's been right about that, but they are doing that. So that's a fundamental change in the European landscape for the better. And the Ukrainians are turning the battlefield to their advantage for the better. So things are moving a lot better in Russia, in the Russian crisis. Let's hope that we can resolve the Iranian crisis. The Pacific is still quiet as the Chinese watch all this, and I don't think they're prepared to do an invasion at this point. So things could still develop in a good way here if these patterns continue rich. Okay, I have to evaluate the statements you just made. If you and I got in the Back to the Future, DeLorean, and we went back to 2020, and we met Jim Gilmore, and we said, we're from the future, and we're going to tell you there's armed conflict between, and we probably would have called it the Ukraine back then, the Ukraine in Russia, and that Ukraine was going to take it to the Russians. What do you think 2020 Jim Gilmore would have told a futuristic Jim Gilmore from 2026? Well, actually, I was in that DeLorean, and I had that, no, look, we wouldn't have thought that because the populations are so different. But, you know, Russia has got its frailties. And I think that this war that Vladimir Putin has engaged in.

is in fact to cover up some of those frailties, and if he could have conquered Ukraine, he would have been on his way to the redevelopment of the Russian Empire. I've said that from the beginning also. Right. The problem is that the Ukrainians are fighting for their very lives, and the Russian army is not very good on the ground. His only theory, Vladimir Putin's only theory now, is just sacrifice soldiers to gain inches. And that's not a very good thing to try to do in a drone war. The more sophisticated battlefield today has been developed by the Ukrainians and their technology. And they're winning because they're using robots. They're using drones. They're using automated new things on the battlefield. And the Russians just aren't able to keep up. Now, I don't underestimate the danger of this nuclear power and their willingness to sacrifice soldiers. They've sacrificed hundreds of thousands. dead, hundreds of thousands wounded, so they're serious people and what Vladimir Putin wants to do. But right now, I believe that the battlefield is definitely moving in the right direction. Crimea is isolated and is continuing to be isolated. Gasoline, food, things can't go into that peninsula, which was taken over under the Obama administration. And the Ukrainians are basically saying, look, we're not surrendering that. So things are moving in the right direction there. And I think that's going to have a real implication for all of European politics for the better if this continues. But it goes from week to week. That's why we're on the radio, isn't it? Absolutely. Governor, I appreciate everything so insightful, especially when you talk about what was going on in Capitol Square and how the reaction to the governor's mansion would be for these poll numbers. And then always insightful on international diplomacy. So I love when... We're able to get your governor's hat on and your ambassadors hat on, and I thank you so much, and I will catch up with you. Thanks for the chance to be on. Talk to your listeners. Thank you so much. Governor Jim Gilmore joins us every Thursday here on News Radio, WRVA. It's always a treat when we could talk with him. All right. Today's program is brought to you apart by our friends at Pearson Signature Dealerships. Only at Pearson. Do you walk in and you go, ugh? I've got something that. Well, nobody else is going to offer me. I walk it. It's already in my pocket. It is my Pearson Promise that says they will double that engine and transmission warranty on this new vehicle. It means a lot. Listen, you sat there. negotiating for your car and they go, hey, how'd you like to extend the war? How'd you want to extend the warranty? Yeah, that's great. Okay, that'll cost you X amount. You don't do that. It appears in the signature dealerships. That's why they're different. That's why they're different. What they tell you is, hey, come on in. Oh, don't worry about... trying to get that extended warranty on the engine transmission, we really have that taken care. We want you to be comfortable. We want you to know you're going to be a customer for life. And it starts right here with this relationship, and it starts with that Pearson Promise, and it only grows from there. Find out more. Go to buypearson.com, buy Pearson.com. Listen.

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