Petraeus Warns Congress on Russia, Immigration Order
Petraeus Warns Congress on Russia, Immigration Order by Joe Gould, Defense News
Retired US Army Gen. David Petraeus warned lawmakers the weakening of NATO and the European Union plays into the hands of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s attempts to undermine liberal democracies.
“I would argue that repulsing this challenge is as much a test of America’s faith in our best traditions and values as it is of our military strength, though our military strength obviously is a crucial component of our national power and does need shoring up,” Petraeus said Wednesday.
Petraeus, the former CIA director, appeared before the House Armed Services Committee with John McLaughlin, the former CIA deputy director. Petraeus warned that “revisionist” powers Russia, China and Iran are seeking to weaken the rules-based international order that emerged after World War II just as the US faces “a loss of self-confidence, resolve, and strategic clarity” about saving it from collapse.
“This is precisely what some of our adversaries seek to encourage,” Petraeus said. “President Putin, for instance, understands that while conventional aggression may occasionally enable Russia to grab a bit of land on its periphery, the real center of gravity is the political will of the major democratic powers to defend Euro-Atlantic institutions like NATO and the EU.” …