Iran 'Desperately' Wants a Deal: US Ambassador to NATO

Yeah, joining us now is U.S. Ambassador to NATO, Matt Whitaker. Ambassador, thanks for joining us. We love having you on. As you can see, Brett Baer pushing back there with some common sense. Yeah, but you've buried it underground and you've enriched it well beyond what you need. And so my question to you or what I really want to point out here and get your reaction is, so the deal they're offering is to reduce their enrichment levels and to succumb to inspections. I feel like that's a 2014 talking point. I feel like we're so far beyond that. I don't even know how that's even something they would put on the table. And God forbid that be what we end this with, because that's what we started it with, isn't it? It's good to see you again. And you're right. I mean, we start from a position where they can't have a nuclear program, they can't have a nuclear weapon, and they have to abandon it. They have to give up what they were working on. And you know, President Trump has been so successful with the naval blockade and the sanctions. Their economy is crippled. They are completely broke. Their currency is weak. Inflation is high. And, you know, they desperately want a deal. But these kind of half measures that they offer or illusory deals to make themselves look good on the world stage are just not acceptable. And so President Trump's right to reject it. Ambassador, of course, we're talking now about their nuclear program and whether or not they want to bomb. I think most of us can fill in the blank on that. But based on their past actions, most of us would assume they certainly do. But beyond just the nuclear program that has been set back dramatically thanks to President Trump in this effort, I think most people, most everyday Americans are thinking more about that Strait of Hormuz and how it impacts their gas prices and everything else and the diesel prices that impact everything else that they buy. Do you think moving forward, it's going to be less about nuclear and inspections and more about that Strait, which they have promised to open in the past but have not? Well, the U.S. is in total control of the Strait. Our blockade is only keeping Iranian ships from transiting. Obviously, many ships are moving through the Strait, giving oil supply to the world. But, you know, we also have the war in Russia where 60 percent or more of their oil production facilities are offline currently because of successful Ukrainian hits. And so, I mean, it's a combination of a lot of things. But one of the things I know about President Trump is he's doing this all in the interest of the American people. And ultimately, when this is successful, when we have these wars resolved to the advantage of the United States and our allies, we're going to see, you know, plenty of oil and gas and diesel on the market. And that should be, you know, sooner rather than later. Ambassador Whitaker, Iran wasn't the only foreign policy issue on the agenda this week. President Trump hosted Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House, where they apparently made progress on A.I. and several other issues. Watch this. We've made tremendous strides. We've made great strides. Very positive for both countries. Farmers are going to be very happy. A lot of very positive things happened. But America is very happy about this visit, and I'm sure China is very happy. Also, great things for both countries. And it's been just very, very productive. Now, Ambassador, we heard about a new trade deal that they were negotiating. But when it comes to A.I., what kind of deal do you imagine the two countries could possibly make, given the very severe competition to see who comes out on top in this A.I. race? Well, President Trump certainly understands that whoever wins the A.I. race controls the future. And so that's why the United States is going to win, and that's why he wants this to continue to develop in the United States. But, you know, he's willing to talk to anyone, our allies, our adversaries. And what we saw this week with President Xi is that President Trump came from a position of strength. We have an amazing economy in the United States, you know, and a lot is currently based on how advanced we are technologically. And he's going to keep that advantage. But I think we did make a lot of progress. But there are so many areas, trade, A.I., and many other issues that were talked about. And I think the ball was moved down the field. And that's super important, really, for the United States and for, you know, where we are in this moment in world history. Ambassador Whitaker, let's turn to the conflict you're closest to, the Russia-Ukraine war. The two sides are exchanging fire. President Trump says he's hopeful for a deal between President Zelensky and President Putin that will finally bring an end to the conflict. I agreed with Zelensky that we talked about a lot of different subjects, and many of those subjects have very strong agreement. But you know what I want him to do? Make a deal. I want him to settle with Putin, and I want Putin to settle with him. Mr. Ambassador, there have been a number of rounds of negotiations. Do you get the sense that Vladimir Putin is willing to do anything short of full control of Ukraine? This conflict is not going to be resolved on the battlefield. It's only going to be through diplomacy and negotiation. That's why President Trump and his team continue to talk to both sides to find any similarities between the positions to bring them together. But it's going to take both sides, to your point, Rich, to agree. It's going to take both to agree on the fundamental issues. And I think that's where Ukraine, continuing to make strong attacks on Russia, and that is helping to, I think, bring the sides closer together. But we're still a long way apart. And obviously, if President Putin is unwilling to compromise with his maximalist issues, then it's going to be impossible. But I think if there's a deal to be made, President Trump is a businessman, he's a dealmaker, and I think he'll make the deal. All right. Ambassador Matthew Whitaker, thank you for joining us tonight. We appreciate it. All right. Good to see you. Thank you. I'll bring you back out. Rich, I'll go back to you on that question you just asked. With Ukraine, I mean, we're talking almost six years, I think, into this war now, and it's become almost palatable, I guess. I don't even know if it moves the needle on American politics anymore. But then we get news this week that diesel is largely affected by it, and so it's not like it's a non-factor. The Iran stuff is taking up all the oxygen, but there is another huge war going on right now, and that's the ambassador to NATO right there. Maybe the news with Greenland this week kind of changes things a little bit, but I feel like President Trump is having to at least walk him to gum, and he's probably doing a lot more work on the Ukraine-Russia situation than we realize. This is the largest conflict in Europe since the Second World War. There's a major war that's been going on, and the innovation that we've seen from Ukraine in drone warfare, in the way that they've been fighting, it is incredible that when that attack happened in 2022, that Russia didn't take over that country immediately, and here they are surviving. The question is, how much is it going to take to compel Vladimir Putin to stop? He has sent millions of people into this conflict, where the life expectancy is a few days, maybe their first attack. I mean, it's absolute hell for Russian soldiers right now, but how much can that economy and how much can those people bear, and how much is Putin even aware of what's going on on that battlefield? There's tons of questions surrounding it as to when this thing's going to end. Kayleigh, you know, you asked about AI. I don't really see what a deal—I don't even understand the premise of a deal between us and China on AI. It's just such a purely competitive environment. We can't even—we can't even reign in our own competition with AI. I don't know how we're going to make a deal with China over it. Yeah, I think that, you know, President Trump obviously has to maintain a sort of facade of a good relationship with the president of China. He's always done that throughout his time in office. However, I do think that there are certain conflicts that you're just never going to find a bridge between the two countries, and I think that many people look at the Trump administration's foreign policy moves, whether it's in Iran or Venezuela, and they do see a strategic effort to box China out of the global order entirely and to actually prevent China from making any serious moves of its own in regards to Taiwan and even potentially in the AI field. So I think that obviously there is that underwriting conflict that you're just never going to get rid of, but certainly a good relationship between the two, at least to the public face, can go a little bit of a way. I mean, in the last 20 they've done nothing but steal our intellectual property, schematics to the F-35, and all kinds of other things, Tommy. I mean, it's not like China's going to start all of a sudden playing friendly, but speaking of all of a sudden playing friendly, I don't think the Iranian president was speaking, I think he's speaking out both sides of his mouth, to say the least. You know, we talk about the ambassador there said, we control the state of war moves. The only thing stopped from coming to the state of war moves is Iran. And although we are controlling that aspect of it, there's still a lot of fears. And now it's made its way over to the other side of Saudi Arabia. So it's like there's Iran still has some leverage here that we need to figure out. It's going to be punishing in the midterms. I think President Trump has accepted that, and he's weathering it the best way that he can, knowing that this is not a problem that's going to get resolved in the next month. Right. But President Trump is also smart enough to know that there will be the day after the midterms. Yeah. And that's when the reckoning is going to come, because really, Iran has lost a lot of leverage the day after those midterms. And if Republicans do get clobbered because of the cost of things, and because of this conflict with Iran, which is unpopular, they're still going to have to contend with this president and this administration and this secretary of war the day after those midterms, and then for the next couple of years. So I think that the president is playing this the best way he can right now. He's in the situation. It's not going to be resolved. It's about how we weather it. But if the Democrats are telling the American people that they can handle this, I would assume that voters are smarter than that. Yeah. You know, if the only thing holding President Trump and Secretary Hegseth back is Republicans begging them to let them get reelected, if they don't win, what do they have to lose? Exactly. Yeah.