On July 4th, 1776, our nation’s fighting spirit and will to win was born.
The Continental Congress is BoldDeclared independenceWith independence from Great Britain under the rule of George III, the King’s world was turned upside down forever. Since the triumphant return of the Thirteen Colonies, Americans have continued to hold onto that defining spirit for generations to come.
248 years later, we are at war again. On February 22, 2022, the day Russian President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine, the world as we knew it since the end of World War II was once again turned upside down.
This is not a war we started,Multipolar WarPutin’s chosen war is rapidly becoming global in scale and scope, beginning in Eastern Europe and exploding beyond Ukraine, spreading to the Middle East and the Sahel region of sub-Saharan Africa, and threatening to engulf Taiwan.
What was it?Ideological WarThey are now more active, but Washington and Brussels still largely reject Putin’s efforts to work with Chinese President Xi Jinping to impose a multipolar world order on the West.
We are already in the middle of World War III, just not in the way Hollywood predicted it would look or feel like. We are not seeing nuclear mushroom clouds exploding around us, nor are we waking up in a post-radioactive scenario trying to survive in a fallout shelter.
Instead, this real-life version of World War III is far more insidious and deceptive. We face death by countless Russian and Chinese cuts around the world, yet the majority of our citizens are unaware of our growing danger.
The Biden administration remains in a state of deep denial, just as King George III and his advisors deluded themselves in the 1770s. Washington must finally wake up to the scope and scale of Moscow and Beijing’s machinations and be forthright in telling the American people what it must ask of them to protect their freedom.
This war is not going away. The scary thing is that Biden has no comprehensive strategy for winning it, and his national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, has failed to develop one, inexplicably choosing to pursue connections and short-term political gain.
As a result, there is a growing risk that these relationships could turn into losses. As the saying goes, if you’re not winning, you’re losing. It’s time for the United States to recognize that it’s time to play. And that means winning against Russia, China, and their allies.
To get there, Biden must first demand Sullivan’s resignation, abandon “escalation paralysis,” and appoint a capable general like Ben Hodges or David Petraeus to replace him.
This needs to happen quickly. Sullivan’s concerns about escalating tensions have led to a paradoxical but predictable reaction from Putin to double down on them, whether through weaponizing space, threatening nuclear attacks on NATO capitals, or escalating regional tensions in the Middle East and Africa.
Winning is not a rocket science. It’s at the core of our nation’s DNA. But Biden will have a tough job overcoming his fear of a Sullivan victory, and unfortunately, the president doesn’t seem willing to tackle that just yet.
It is important that our allies are willing to win for us on the expanding battlefield of World War III. President Volodymyr Zelensky and his generals have proven that for 862 days. And Ukraine can certainly strike a winning blow against President Putin. Crimea is becoming untenable for Russia. Moscow is taking the initiative in Kharkov, Kupyansk and other areas on the eastern front of Ukraine, but Kiev is fending off Moscow’s attacks and the situation on the battlefield is becoming more and more favorable for a Ukrainian counterattack.
Russian casualties continue to rise sharply 545,090 dead and injuredThe US-made ATACMS has been a big factor in that acceleration, but without Biden’s restrictions, Ukraine might have been able to further disrupt Russian forces massing near the border before they entered heavy fighting inside Ukraine.
Currently, the Institute for the Study of War estimates that Biden’s rules of engagement for the United States limit ATACMS from attacking Ukraine.16 percent of the territoryRussia is using this to mass its forces and launch deadly attacks with drones, missiles and glide bombs. Ukraine cannot win as long as Biden continues to cede 84% of the battlefield as a sanctuary to the enemy.
Israel is likewise willing to stake a strategic victory for Washington in the Middle East, not only against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, but also against Hezbollah and Iran’s burgeoning nuclear weapons program.
Putin, in coordination with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has been deliberately detaining U.S. air and naval assets in the Middle East, Mediterranean and Red Seas since October 7. But far from encouraging Israel to emerge victorious, Jerusalem has also resented Sullivan’s concerns about escalating tensions.
After Iran attacked Israel on April 13 and 14, firing drones and missiles,Biden:He urged Israel not to seek victory against Tehran. By his own admission, he told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he would be dealing with any major Israeli retaliation against Tehran alone.
In the Biden White House, draws seem fine. That’s consistent with his “just enough” strategy. But he’s not going to let America’s allies win. Instead, ironically, given that he campaigned on ending forever wars in the 2020 election, his president’s legacy is going to be one of allowing new forever wars to take root. Biden refuses to aim for a total victory and continues to prevent our allies from winning on our behalf.
Putin is the economyPreparations for war… We don’t. The Russian president knows that he has caused World War III. Biden apparently doesn’t know, or at least doesn’t understand the gravity of it.
Meanwhile, Xi Jinping is accelerating his plans to seize Taiwan, without yet a proper plan for defending Taipei, let alone other key allies in the Indo-Pacific region.
Iran is rapidlyNuclear explosionNorth Korea is stepping up its threats against Seoul.
A world war is a game changer, and for Biden, now, on Independence Day, is the time to win it and start turning the world upside down again.
Mark TothHe writes about national security and foreign policy. Colonel Jonathan Sweet (Ret.)He served as a military intelligence officer for 30 years and led U.S. European Command’s Intelligence Division from 2012 to 2014.
