One Dictator Is Already on the March. Are We Ready for Two More?

First Putin. Now Iran. Next is Kim. And we’re too busy arguing to stop any of them.

Imagine telling Donald Trump that he’s lost his shock value on the international stage. It would probably rattle him to his bones.

On the first day of the G7 meeting in Canada, Trump showed up sounding like the Kremlin’s spokesperson. He wondered aloud why Russia was kicked out of the G7, calling it “a very big mistake.” Then he added, “We spend so much time talking about Russia, and he's no longer at the table.” The irony? No one talks to Putin more than Trump does.

And then came the kicker. Later in the day, Trump made it clear he’s not interested in slapping sanctions on Russia. When Politico asked him whether he stood with Europe on new sanctions over Russia's invasion, Trump shrugged: “Well, Europe is saying that, but they haven’t done it yet.”

That’s a big freaking deal. For months, he kept talking about sanctions—“two weeks,” he’d say. He even wondered aloud on social media if Putin was “tapping him along.” Now, just as the world stares at the one tool that could actually end this war—cutting the G7 oil price cap from $60 to $45, enough to finally choke Putin’s war machine—Trump quietly slips out the back door.

And no one gave a shit. The headlines were subdued. Some European outlets didn’t even bother digging deep. And that’s a good sign. European media isn’t going numb—they’re just waking up to a simple truth: Trump will side with Putin. And that’s very good news.

I’m waiting to see what the G7 does today. Hopefully, they impose sanctions on their own and leave the U.S. out of it. That’s the right move. Trump has already left the G7 early—he’s back in the U.S., possibly preparing for American involvement in the Israel-Iran conflict.

Over the last two days, a large number of American aircraft and refueling tankers have crossed the Atlantic. The USS Nimitz aircraft carrier was rerouted from the South China Sea to the Middle East on Monday. It’s now set to join the USS Carl Vinson strike group, which has been stationed in the Arabian Sea for some time.

Two aircraft carriers and a massive aerial deployment—that’s not routine.

This doesn’t mean the United States has decided to enter the conflict. But it gives Trump the option to move fast if he chooses to.

Just yesterday, I wrote that Iran had lost control and Israel had gained air superiority. So why is the U.S. now trying to insert itself—despite both the far right and far left uniting against any new military intervention? The MAGA backlash was swift and furious. Trump, under pressure, came out swinging: he decides what “America First” means—not the MAGA propagandists.

Why risk the optics just to beat a country that's already been beaten badly?

Because of one thing: Iran’s two main uranium enrichment sites—Natanz and Fordow. That’s where they've stockpiled a good amount of enriched uranium. And both sites are buried deep underground. Fordow is estimated to sit 80 to 90 meters below the surface. Natanz is dug in around 8 to 12 meters deep.

Iran was closing in on the bomb—fast.

In November 2019, Iranian nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi announced that Iran will enrich uranium to 5% at Fordow.

In January 2020 the Fordow site had 1,044 centrifuges designed to enrich uranium hexafluoride.

In January 2021 the Fordow site began to produce uranium enriched to a 20% level.

In March 2023, CNN reported that "near bomb-grade" uranium had been found at Fordow. The IAEA confirmed that 83.7% pure U-235 was discovered at Fordow, and that this had been very much a surprise to the agency.

Can you see the acceleration between 2021 and 2023? What changed during that period? Russia and Iran happened. They knew they had backing—and they slammed the pedal to the floor. Now, they're dangerously close to the bomb.

Despite Israel’s strikes, the uranium at both locations is still untouched.

Rafael Grossi, head of the global nuclear watchdog, confirmed it. While buildings above ground at Natanz were destroyed, the critical underground sites weren’t hit.

“There has been no additional damage at the Natanz fuel enrichment plant site since the Friday attack,” Grossi said. “There has been no indication of a physical attack on the underground cascade hall containing part of the pilot fuel enrichment plant and the main fuel enrichment plant.”

There’s no country in the world today that can take out Iran’s underground nuclear assets—at least not easily. It would take a sustained, high-volume bombing campaign. Only the United States has the kind of bunker-busting arsenal required. Otherwise, Israel would have to take the risk of sending special operations forces in. And Iran will be waiting.

That’s the only reason the Trump administration is even thinking about stepping in. And if it comes to that, I support it—completely. We’ve already paid the price for one dictator with nukes. Are we really ready for two in five years? Three in ten? We might as well kiss our kids goodbye and teach them how to live without us. Schools may as well start preparing children for life after a nuclear strike.

The biggest threat we face is the tightening nexus between Russia, Iran, and North Korea. Every chance we get to slow them down—every window we have to reduce their firepower—we need to take it with both hands. Iran is on the brink of building a nuclear weapon. And make no mistake—if they succeed, Saudi Arabia won’t wait. Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman has already said as much.

Then what? Two nuclear-armed powers in the Middle East? That’s not a risk—it’s a guaranteed disaster.

And once Iran crosses the line, Kim Jong-un won’t be far behind. After two years of backing Putin, you have to wonder what kind of return he’s expecting. The stage is already set for the Russia-Iran-North Korea axis to spiral out of control.

Thankfully, Trump was stopped—before his affection for Putin turned into a full-blown love fest with Moscow, Tehran, and Pyongyang.

It’s still unclear whether Trump will order a strike on Iran’s nuclear program. But if he doesn’t, then Israel’s national security team will have no choice—they’ll have to find a way to take out the enrichment sites themselves.

I have no admiration for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He showed his true colors when he tried to kneecap Israel’s judiciary. He’ll try to take credit for everything unfolding now. But in reality, much of the pain Israel and the region are facing stems from his naivety and strategic blindness on national security.

When the Ukraine war began, I flagged two countries facing existential crises: Israel and South Korea. You see why now. I also said—if they don’t help Ukraine defeat Russia, war will eventually come knocking on their own doors. For Israel, it arrived early, in the form of Hamas. But did they reform their national security posture? No. They targeted Hamas—the arrow—while ignoring the archer. And they’ll keep striking arrows, over and over, as the archer keeps getting stronger.

That archer is Iran. And it’s grown bolder with every step Russia has taken in Ukraine.

Now, finally, Israel’s national security team seems to be waking up. They've sent Patriot air-defense systems to Ukraine—confirmed by Israel’s ambassador in Kyiv. But even then, they flinched. When Russia protested, Israel quickly claimed they hadn’t delivered the weapons. Were they lying? No. Most likely, they passed the Patriots to a third party, who then sent them on.

It’s cowardice, plain and simple. They know Iran wants to wipe them out. They know Iran and Russia are deep in a weapons alliance. They know Tehran is preparing to buy Russian fighter jets—jets that may one day bomb Tel Aviv. And yet, they still hesitate, worried about Moscow’s reaction. That’s the rot at the heart of Israel’s national security doctrine. This exact brand of strategic stupidity is what let Hamas evolve into the threat it became.

Unless this government is packed up and sent home next year, Israel will continue to stumble. But for now—on Iran, at least—they're finally moving in the right direction.

The world cannot afford a nuclear-armed Iran. If Trump’s administration delivers just one thing for the democratic world, let it be this.

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