Lawrence Wilkerson, a former U.S. official and retired colonel, in an interview, examined the performance of Iran and the United States in recent conflicts.
Referring to the confusion of American military personnel in the Iran war, he said, "It has been this way since the 9/11 incident. I give the example of a lieutenant who suffers from PTSD and told me he never knew what he was fighting for."
Wilkerson added, "I think every thinking member of the U.S. Armed Forces, and there are many who are not thinking, but anyone who thinks at all knows that there is no discernible objective behind the wars we have waged since 9/11, except for contractors like Lockheed Martin who make incredible wealth from them and other related individuals, like members of Congress who extend their tenure with money from military companies. There is no thinking soldier, sailor, pilot, marine, or coast guardsman who knows what they are doing for a purpose."
Criticizing U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, he said, "This is a situation that cannot be easily changed, because we have ensured that we now have a mercenary army."
Wilkerson explained, "Hegseth has actually ensured that not only is our army mercenary, but 11 to 12 percent of it is Category IV psychologically, meaning they can't even read their names on the list of guards. Another 10 to 20 percent are Christian nationalists who fight for Christ in the military, and Hegseth is ensuring they dominate the U.S. Armed Forces... These people are not fighting for God and country. They are not even fighting for national security. They are fighting for Donald Trump... For them, in many cases, he is God. He is Christ."
The retired American colonel, referring to the poor performance of U.S. defenses, said, "The hit rate of Patriot 2 and Patriot 3 is probably less than 4 percent. In the videos I have seen, even that 4 percent cannot be seen... Ballistic missiles enter without any resistance, and Patriot 2 and Patriot 3 mostly miss... These weapons systems are not effective given the current technology of ballistic missiles and other weapons."
Wilkerson, referring to the poor performance of F-35 fighters, said, "Look at the F-35. The F-35, which has now cost more than a trillion dollars and will cost more over time. The F-35 has an operational readiness rate of about 27 to 28 percent. That means for every four times you want it to fly, it flies once. This is a disaster."
The former U.S. official identified two issues as the main issues of the war and said, "The reason for Iran's priority and strategic advantage over anything Donald Trump does is two issues. Ultimately, the first is the nuclear program, and the second is the Strait of Hormuz."
Wilkerson added, "Oman's Foreign Minister has once again signaled and explicitly stated who the real threat in the strait is, and that is Israel. He explicitly states that the real problem in the region is Israel, not Iran. I think he is right."
Referring to the nuclear issues being removed from negotiations, he said, "Their ultimate tool is their nuclear program. What is ridiculous about this, not just ridiculous but tragic, is that Donald Trump started with this issue and said his main focus is this; he has now completely lost focus on it."
Iran Remains in the Superior Position with the Support of Russia and China
The American analyst, referring to the enormous costs of any ground operation in Iran, said, "It would be catastrophic. I see no way it could affect Iran."
Lawrence Wilkerson, referring to Iran's superior position in these conflicts, said, "So Iran remains in the superior position and also has Russia and China alongside it, and I think China is ultimately with them, meaning they have the world's largest economy on their side."
The former U.S. official further stated that the Iran war has diverted attention from the Gaza genocide and said, "It seems everyone except Iranians have forgotten the Palestinians. It seems Iranians are the only ones, and the Houthis (Ansarullah of Yemen)."
Lawrence Wilkerson added, "Everyone has forgotten the Palestinians, and this is what the Israelis want and what Donald Trump wants. Apparently, we as a government want this. We don't want anyone to remember the Palestinians, while they disappear in that dark night under the rubble, soon to become whatever Jared Kushner and his sons have planned for them."
The former chief of staff to the U.S. Secretary of State said, "This is essentially an evil thing we have done. It is not equivalent to Hitler's Holocaust, but it is very close. If it continues at the current pace, there are truly 250,000 to 300,000 Palestinians under the rubble."
Referring to the similarity of this massacre to other major events of the past century, he said, "It could match them. That is, it could match anything that has happened in the past century, with Mao's purges, Stalin's purges, Hitler, and all the other things that happened that were so ugly we thought we had left them behind and built a set of laws and regulations to negate them. But it is returning, and Israel is leading the way."
