WAY IT WOULD TWIST OR TURN, BUT
GIVEN THE PAST HISTORY AND WHAT
THEY’VE BEEN SAYING UP TO THIS
POINT.
MARIA: SENATOR, YOU’VE ALSO BEEN
VERY CONCERNED ABOUT CYBER
ATTACKS.
YOU TALKED ABOUT THE THREAT OF A
CYBER ATTACK FOR YEARS BACK IN
MARCH OF 20 YOU TOLD US THAT --
2020 YOU TOLD US THAT CYBER
WARFARE WAS THE NEW BATTLEFIELD
FOR THE 21ST CENTURY.
TELL ME ABOUT THE POTENTIAL FOR
CYBER ATTACKS ON OUR BANKING, TECHNOLOGY, ENERGY SECTORS.
TECHNOLOGY, ENERGY SECTORS. HOW CONCERNED SHOULD WE BE?
HOPING THAT RUSSIA WILL GET
BLAMED FOR IT IN THE PROCESS.
NOW, THAT SAID, I WILL TELL YOU
THAT IF YOU LOOK AT THE
SITUATION TODAY, PUTIN HAS TO
CHANGE THE BATTLEFIELD
CONDITIONS AT THIS POINT.
HE HAS TO REGAIN MOMENTUM, OKAY?
HE’S NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO DO
THAT DIPLOMATICALLY, HE CAN’T DO
THAT ECONOMICALLY OR THROUGH
CONVENTION -- HIS MILITARY IS
STUCK IN A QUAGMIRE.
THEY’RE STUCK, THEY’RE STALLED.
AND SO HOW CAN HE ESCALATE?
HE HAS A HANDFUL OF OPTIONS.
CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL, CYBER’S
ANOTHER OPTION.
AN ATTACK AGAINST THE UNITED
STATES, AGAINST ONE OF OUR
COMPANIES, THEY’LL SAY, LOOK, WE
HAVE ACCESS TO THESE COMPANIES,
THESE INDUSTRIES.
OBVIOUSLY, THE ONES I KEEP AN
EYE ON ARE TELECOMMUNICATIONS,
BANKING AND ENERGY, OIL AND GAS
COMPANIES, BECAUSE THOSE ARE THE
ONES THAT WOULD MOST HURT THE
COUNTRY.
THAT WOULD BE HIS EQUIVALENT OF
SANCTIONS AGAINST THE U.S.
ECONOMY.
MARIA: WHAT’S YOUR TAKE ON THIS
PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN CHINA AND
RUSSIA?
THE WHITE HOUSE STILL HAS NOT
TOLD US WHAT, QUOTE-UNQUOTE,
CONSEQUENCES JOE BIDEN PUT ON
THE TABLE FOR XI JINPING DURING
THAT PHONE CALL.
HAVE YOU BEEN BRIEFED ON THE
PHONE CALL BETWEEN JOE BIDEN IF
XI JINPING?
AND WHAT ARE THE CONSEQUENCES --
>> I HAVE NOTMENT YEAH, I HAVE
NOT.
FIRST OF ALL, THAT’S THE
IMPORTANT THING WE HAVE TO SAY
IS ALL THIS -- I READ SOME
ARTICLES LAST WEEK AND COLUMNS
ABOUT CHINA’S IN A TOUGH SPOT.
CHINA’S ALREADY DECIDED, OKAY?
XI JINPING AND CHINA ARE 100% ON
RUSSIA’S SIDE.
THEY’RE GOING TO TRY TO HIDE IT
BECAUSE IT HURTS THEIR VIEW
AROUND THE WORLD, HOW PEOPLE SEE
THEM, BUT THEY’RE 100% ON
RUSSIA’S SIDE, AND I UNDERSTAND
WHY.
NUMBER ONE, THEY FIGURE AS LONG
AS RUSSIA IS STRONG OR STRONG
ENOUGH, IT DISTRACTS US FROM
FOCUSING ON CHINA.
AND THE SECOND IT’S BECAUSE THEY
VIEW PUTIN AND CHINA AND RUSSIA
AS CO-COMBATANTS, AND THAT SENDS
THEIR PARTNERS IN THIS BROADER
CONFLICT.
AS FAR AS BUYING OIL AND GAS
FROM THEM, SURE, ESPECIALLY NOW
THAT YOU CAN BUY IT AT A
DISCOUNT AROUND THE WORLD
BECAUSE MANY OIL AND GAS TRADERS
ARE RELUCTANT TO TOUCH RUSSIAN
OIL AND GAS, I THINK CHINA’S
GOING TO TRY TO CREATE AN
ALTERNATIVE TO THE SWIFT SYSTEM
TO ALLOW BANKING TO TRANSACT
OCCUR ELECTRONICALLY.
SO WE SHOULD BE SANCTIONING
EVERY ONE OF THESE CHINESE
ENTITIES THAT DOES BUSINESS WITH
PUTIN.
SIMPLE AS THAT.
WE NEED TO ANNOUNCE IF ANY
CHINESE COMPANY OR ENTITY THAT
IS HELPING RUSSIA EVADE
SANCTIONS WILL ALSO BE
SANCTIONED.
MARIA: YEAH.
WELL, WE’RE NOT THOUGH, RIGHT?
I MEAN, YOU KNOW, WE STILL SEE
CHINESE COMPANIES IN ALL OF
THOSE INVESTMENT PORTFOLIOS
ACROSS THE COUNTRY, THE
ADMINISTRATION CANCELED THE
CHINA INITIATIVE WHERE THE DOJ
WAS INVESTIGATING INTELLECTUAL
PROPERTY THEFT.
LAST MONTH YOU SAID DESPITE
BEIJING’S AGGRESSION AGAINST
TAIWAN, YOU DO NOT EXPECT XI TO
INVADE TAIWAN ANYTIME SOON.
DO YOU STAND BY THAT?
AND HAS BIDEN’S WEAKNESS CHANGED
THINGS?
BECAUSE WITH, LOOK, AT A TIME
THAT THE U.S. SHOULD BE, SOME
SAY, DECOUPLING FROM CHINA, IT
SEEMS THAT THIS ADMINISTRATION
IS EASING ALL OF THE TRUMP ERA
TARIFFS ON CHINESE GOODS AND
EASING SOME OF THE TOUGH STANCE
THAT THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
HAD ON CHINA.
>> WELL, FIRST OF ALL, WHAT I
SAID ABOUT TAIWAN IS I DON’T
THINK HE’S GOING TO INVADE IN
THE NEXT SIX MONTHS, BUT I DON’T THINK WE FINISH THIS DECADE
THINK WE FINISH THIS DECADE
WITHOUT CHINA MAKING A MOVE.
I THINK CERTAINLY BY THE MIDDLE
PART OF THIS DECADE, IN THE NEXT
FEW YEARS, THEY’RE GOING TO BE
DOING SOMETHING, AND I’D WATCH
CLOSELY IN OCTOBER, NOVEMBER OF
THIS YEAR, THEY SAID THEY’RE
GOING TO ANNOUNCE A NEW TAIWAN
POINT IT’S VERY CLEAR THIS IS A
KEY PART OF HIS PERSONAL LEGACY.
TAIWAN IS TO CHINA WHAT UKRAINE
IS TO PUTIN.
THEIR PREFERENCE IS FOR TAIWAN
JUST TO SURRENDER TO SAY, LOOK,
AMERICA’S NOT GOING TO DO
ANYTHING ABOUT IT, WE MIGHT AS
WELL SURRENDER AND NEGOTIATE THE
TERMS BY WHICH WE FALL UNDER
YOUR UMBRELLA.
THAT, I THINK, IS HIS PRIORITY.
THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION IS
SCHIZOPHRENIC ABOUT CHINA
BECAUSE ON THE ONE HAND THEY
TALK ABOUT THEM BEING AN
ADVERSARY, A COMPETITOR, AND ON
THE OTHER YOU’VE GOT PEOPLE
OBSESSED WITH THE IDEA OF
CUTTING SOME GREEN NEW GLOBAL
DEAL WITH CHINA TO GET THEIR
COOPERATION ON, YOU KNOW, GREEN
ENERGY AND CLIMATE CHANGE AND SO
FORTH.
AND HERE’S THE ONE THING THEY
DON’T TELL YOU, ALL THOSE
BATTERIES, ALL THE MIN MINERALS
THAT GO INTO THOSE BATTERIES,
RARE EARTH MINERALS, SOLAR
PANEL, ALL THESE THINGS THAT
JOHN KERRY FANTASIZES ABOUT, IT ALL COMES FROM CHINA.
ALL COMES FROM CHINA.
THEY’VE GOT TO MAKE OUR NATIONAL
SECURITY A PRIORITY AHEAD OF
THAT CRAZY STUFF.
MARIA: YEAH, IT’S A GREAT POINT,