Webinar | Will the CCP Resuscitate the Iranian Threat?

The ongoing debate about the damage inflicted by U.S. and Israeli forces on Iran’s nuclear weapons program is obscuring a larger – and deeply concerning – reality: What’s been described as the end of “the 12-day war” has left the mullahs still in power in Tehran, their instruments for repressing the Iranian people still operating and their Communist Chinese allies still able to infuse the regime with cash, know-how and military hardware.

The ayatollahs were presumably shocked that the PRC was not more helpful as Iran was subjected to massive attacks by Israel and a devastating U.S. strike on three key nuclear weapons-related facilities. Apart from a few reported freighter aircraft inserting unknown contents into Iran, the strategic Iran-China alliance appeared to be inoperative, raising questions about their relationship in the wake of the ceasefire announced by President Trump.

With Mr. Trump’s subsequent declaration that Communist China could now legally export Iranian oil it had previously been smuggling, however, the CCP has an opportunity to become a vital lifeline for the Tehran regime and the decisive enabler of its efforts to retain power and, presumably, once again murderously project it in the Middle East region and beyond.

This CPDC webinar examines that prospect and its implications, including: Why did the CCP recoil from coming to Iran’s assistance during Israel’s Rising Lion operation and America’s Midnight Hammer one? Is such unreliability likely to have lasting negative impact on ties between the two countries or with what amounts to Beijing’s other colonies? If so, is that likely to impede China’s own plans for aggression predicated on its allies’ support?

Alternatively, has the survival of the Iranian regime to date – which amounts to a victory, albeit a costly one for Iran and its allies – made such aggression by Xi more likely, as well as ensuring that Israel, the Mideast and the United States will face renewed threats from the mullahs and their proxies?

Moderator:

- Frank Gaffney, President, Institute for the American Future; Vice Chairman, Committee on the Present Danger: China

Panelists:

- Dr. David Wurmser, PhD, Director, Mideast Program, Center for Security Policy; former naval intelligence officer with the rank of Lieutenant Commander; former Mideast expert advisor to an Under Secretary of State, National Security Advisor and Vice President of the United States
• Topic: “Is the So-Called ‘12-Day War’ Actually Ended? If Not, What Role will the CCP Play in the Next Phase of an Endless War?”

- Dave Walsh, Former senior executive, Westinghouse; former President and CEO, Mitsubishi Power Systems Americas; Managing Director, Takotagroup LLC
• Topic: “The Implications of Continued Cheap Energy for the Chinese Communists, Redoubled Cash-flow for the Mullahs”

- Col. Grant Newsham, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret.), Former Military Attaché in Embassy Tokyo; former Foreign Service Officer; longtime business executive in the Western Pacific; Author, “When China Attacks: A Warning to America”
• Topic: “Will the Enabling of More Endless War in the Middle East Translate into a Shooting War in the Pacific?”

- Daniel Greenfield, Executive Vice President, David Horowitz Freedom Center; author, “Domestic Enemies: The Founding Fathers Fight Against the Left”
• Topic: “The Way Ahead”