Larry Squared, Putin is Unyielding, and Yemen Holds Firm
It was a busy podcast day for me. What a day. I started at 1015 with the Judge on his Newsmax channel. After finishing with the Judge I did a 10:30 hit with Nima and Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson. At 1330 hours I was with Danny Haiphong and Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson (again), 1500 hours with Randy Credico, 1600 hours with the Judge and Ray, and 1800 hours with George Papadopolous and his wife. The videos with Nima, Danny Haiphong, and the Judge Napolitano Roundtable are posted below if you’re interested.
Trump’s effort to negotiate a quick end to the war in Ukraine has stalled, in large measure because Zelensky and his crew reject the agreement the US reached with Russia in Riyadh on Monday, and because the Europeans refused to lift sanctions on Russian grain and fertilizer exports.
There really is no mystery here. Putin is not playing games nor is he stalling for time. He believes that despite some progress in establishing a dialogue with Trump and his administration, major obstacles remain in the West that will prevent a return to normal, i.e., regular diplomatic relations and relief from sanctions.
Last week, during a closed-door session at the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) congress, Putin delivered a sobering message to Russian business leaders regarding sanctions and the war in Ukraine. He warned them not to expect a quick resolution to the conflict or a rapid lifting of Western sanctions. Putin emphasized that even if sanctions were eased, the West would likely find alternative ways to exert pressure on Russia. He described sanctions as a “mechanism of systemic strategic pressure” rather than temporary measures.
Putin reiterated that there is no hope for a full return to free trade, unrestricted capital flows, or reliance on Western mechanisms for protecting investor rights. He also criticized Western companies that left Russia after the invasion of Ukraine, stating they would face significant barriers if they attempted to return. In other words, Putin ain’t wearing rose colored glasses and remains wary of Western intentions.
During an inspection of the Russian port of Murmansk, which serves its Artic fleet, Putin made the following remarks about the war in Ukraine:
Vladimir Putin didn’t mince words. Speaking from the deck of the Arkhangelsk, a fourth-generation nuclear armed submarine with Zircon hypersonic missiles, the Russian president declared what many have long seen: the Ukrainian military, propped up coming up by Western fantasy and NATO cash, is running out of road. “Not long ago I said, ‘We’ll squeeze them.’ Now there’s reason to believe we’ll finish them off,” Putin told naval officers, standing on steel that echoes with centuries of Russian resilience. . . .
He reminded the world of the West’s serial betrayals: first with the Minsk Agreements, then the Istanbul peace talks in 2022. In both cases, Russia negotiated in good faith. And in both cases, Western capitals, particularly London, sabotaged the process. “Their European handlers convinced the Ukrainian leadership that they had to continue armed resistance… essentially to the last Ukrainian,” Putin said, a line that lands like an indictment should at The Hague (if it functioned as intended).
While at Murmansk, Putin also proposed a solution to fix Ukraine’s illegitimate government… he called for creating an interim government in Ukraine under the supervision of the UN and select neutral countries to hold elections. This is simply a reiteration of one of the key conditions Putin elucidated in his June 2024 speech to senior diplomats at the Russian Foreign Ministry… Ukraine’s sovereignty will be rebuilt, not destroyed, but it will be reconstructed on foundations of neutrality, not NATO weaponization, and will prohibit the neo-Nazis from taking power.
While these statements do not reflect new proposals or a shift in Russia’s stated objectives, Putin has introduced Novorossiya into the equation. Novorossiya encompasses all of eastern and southern Ukraine, including regions like Odesa, Kharkiv, Dnipropetrovsk, and Mykolaiv.
February 27, 2025: Putin stated that Russia would escalate Federal Security Service (FSB) activities in Donbas and Novorossiya, signaling a shift from the terms proposed in June 2024. His spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, reinforced that Donbas and Novorossiya are considered integral to Russia.
March 19, 2025: Putin claimed Novorossiya as a Russian entity during an address to the Prosecutor General’s Office Board. He also referred to Odessa as a “Russian city,” further underscoring he will expand territorial claims if Kiev does not accept the deal on the table.
March 28, 2025: During a meeting with servicemen, Putin highlighted Russian advances in Donbas and Novorossiya, claiming that 99% of the Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR) and over 70% of the Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) have been “liberated.” He asserted that the strategic initiative lies entirely with Russian forces.
Iran, or rather Trump’s threat to attack Iran, is the wild card that could derail efforts to restore normal relations with Russia. Iran has rejected Trump’s offer to open negotiations in exchange for Iran ending all support to the Houthis, Hamas and Hezbollah.
According to Al-Mayadeen and other informed sources, the Iranian’s response included the following points:
Iran reaffirms that it will not negotiate directly with the United States, especially under the policy of maximum pressure, and it rejects the American approach categorically.
Iran states that it does not negotiate on behalf of any regional power, and that Iran does not dictate the foreign policy of other nations or groups, including Yemen’s Ansarallah, which is an independent ally.
Iran states that it will not accept Trump’s ‘unrealistic conditions’, and that the U.S. demands were so extensive that they cannot be entertained even hypothetically.
Iran warns unequivocally that any military or hostile action, whether by the United States or any of its ‘stooges’, will be met with an Iranian response that will encompass all U.S. military assets in the Middle East.
Prior to receiving the Iranian response, Trump ordered a Carrier Strike Group and B-2 bombers to Diego Garcia. As of March 28, 2025, Diego Garcia is hosting five B-2 stealth bombers and two additional arrivals expected. These strategic bombers join two B-52s, which deployed there a year ago.
Some analysts, like my good friends Ray McGovern and Lawrence Wilkerson, believe that this is part of Trump’s negotiating strategy — i.e., a show of force designed to pressure Iran to accept a deal. I am less sanguine. I believe that Trump has been convinced, wrongly in my opinion, that Iran has no credible air defense and that a strategic bombing of Iran could solve what the Iran problem. I pray that I am wrong.