Judging Freedom - COL. Lawrence Wilkerson: Is Putin Losing Patience?

Episode Date: May 29, 2025

COL. Lawrence Wilkerson: Is Putin Losing Patience?See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

you Hi everyone, Judge Andrew Napolitano here for Judging Freedom. Today is Thursday, May 29th, 2025. Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson joins us now. Colonel, always a pleasure, my dear friend. Thank you for accommodating my schedule. I want to talk to you at some length about whether you think President Putin and the Russian people are losing patience with the pace of things in Ukraine. But leading up to that a couple of other questions first if I may. German Chancellor Mertz has announced that terrorist missiles will be sent to Ukraine without any geographic limitation imposed upon their targets. He made a rather belligerent statement which will run for you in just a minute. If he does that, is he running the risk of the Kremlin considering Germany to be a co-belligerent? Not just Germany. I think Putin and Sergey Lavrov have been very explicit and very definitive.

If this happens, if this missile system is introduced, because it takes more than just Germany to launch these missiles, and he knows it, then he will consider that NATO has entered the fray, formally, explicitly, and directly, and he will react accordingly. So look for Warsaw or one of the Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania capitals, or others to be hit. I don't doubt that Putin is serious. Don't they consider the United States a co-belligerent? Of course, we do have the Atlantic Ocean in front of us.

They do, and there are other kinds of things he could do against us, but I think he'll reserve that, put it in his back pocket, so to speak, for when it becomes obvious that he's going to go to war with us anyway, and he'll want to get a jump on it. Here's Chancellor Mertz yesterday, Chris, cut number seven. There are no longer any range restrictions on weapons delivered to Ukraine, neither from the British, nor the French, nor from us, nor from the Americans. This means that Ukraine can now also defend itself, including, for example, by taking actions such as attacking military positions located within Russia, or by targeting other strategic sites as necessary.

Until recently it was not able to do that. Until recently, with very few exceptions, it also did not do that. Now it can. In jargon we call this long-range fire meaning equipping Ukraine with weapons that can attack military targets in the rear and this is the decisive this is the crucial qualitative difference in Ukraine's conduct of the war. Russia attacks civilian targets completely ruthlessly bombing cities, kindergartens, hospitals and nursing homes. Ukraine does not do that and we place great importance on ensuring that it stays that way. But a country that can only confront an aggressor on its own territory is not defending itself

adequately. So and this defense of Ukraine is now also taking place against military infrastructure on Russian territory. ...comments from me before you respond, Colonel. One is that that was an AI-generated English translation purporting to be in Chancellor Mertz's voice if he was speaking English. Unbelievable what AI can do today. Second is, isn't this insane introducing long range fire? I mean, isn't the exposing Berlin to long range fire by doing that? Well, first of all, your explanation

of the AI translation is the future, and God help us all. And second, if it is even a remotely accurate translation, this former CEO of Black Rock is trying to evince his bona fides in military operations, that's hogwash. And second, it's hogwash because he just demonstrated it is so. This is an absurd statement for him to be making that this changes the dynamics of the battlefield and maybe puts Ukraine back into the battle, which is his implication. It does no such thing. What it does is put NATO proper into the battle with the Russians having every incentive

and reason to expand the conflict and to attack NATO. I don't think they'll attack the formidable NATO power initially, but just to make the point, Putin might attack one of the what I would call intermediate powers. What is the status of the German military both offensively and defensively? What is the status of the German air defenses? They couldn't attack, let's put it this way. They couldn't attack Russia and expect to survive for more than 30 days. I mean, it would be devastating.

And I don't just mean Germany. I mean the entire NATO panoply. And I wanna say, mean Germany, I mean the entire NATO panoply. And I want to say, I want to say, outside Turkey and outside the United States, I will eliminate the latter because we're so paper tigerish right now that I wouldn't consider us as a formidable foe for Putin in his current state of readiness and competence. Maybe Turkey, but I don't think Turkey would even think about anything to fray. So you're looking at a paper tiger threatening one of the most formidable, hardcore, trained, battlefield-conditioned, huge military on the face of the earth. It would be

like someone saying in 1865 when we had a million men under arms and fundamentally under Ulysses S. Grant that they wanted to attack the United States. Are you kidding me? Well, can Russia interdict terrorist missiles or are they not interdictable, if there's such a word, by whatever Russia has? Judge, if you're such a word by whatever Russia has. Judge, if you're going to use military jargon, you can put an ABLE on any word.

Thank you, Colonel LeBall. That's what we do to bastardize the English language in the military. The truth here is that Taurus is not going to give him that much of a capacity, but because he's given it and because they will probably use it and because Putin has put down a somewhat red line about its use, it's extremely dangerous. Let's, before we shift gears, is it more likely than not that the Taurus missiles are already there? And that when he says they're coming in the next couple of weeks really means we sent them a few weeks ago? That's what our friend Professor Gilbert Doctorow opines. First question. Second, much like it, would he have done something like this without consulting Prime Minister Starmer, President Macron, President Tusk of Poland, von der Leyen, the head of the European Commission?

Would he have done something this reckless on his own? Well, your first question, my answer would be yes, probably, but the whole system necessary, the whole network necessary might not be in place yet. And to your second question, I would say I think this new chancellor, judging from what I've seen of him to this point, and judging from his previous occupation and career, probably told them, you're right, but he told them in good Germanic form. He told them. He didn't concern. Scott Ritter, whom we both know and admire, and with whom we both work on a regular basis, says this is the most dangerous German Chancellor since Adolf Hitler. I wouldn't go, I wouldn't disagree with that. I wouldn't.

Wow. All right. Switching gears. The attempted assassination of President Putin by drones when he was in a helicopter, which has gotten very, very little coverage here in the West, as you know. Could this have happened without Intel from MI6, CIA, Mossad, all three, one or the other?

I doubt it. It could. There is a possibility, yes, but I doubt it did. And does that mean that the United States and the British or the Israelis who aren't particularly involved in this war, they're doing enough killing, responsible for what they did and is Putin aware from his own intel what intel the Ukrainians relied on? I mean, can you imagine if Russian Intel laid a trap to assassinate the president of the United States, how we would react? Right.

I think you've got to parse a couple of things out of this. One is that did Donald Trump know if there was complicity with Intel agencies within the US and to a certain extent within Mossad and with the European complex particularly Britain and France and Germany and and second would he have condoned it had he knew about it I don't think so at this point I know there's friction and and he's looking like he's walking away from the whole affair in disgust. But I just don't think he would have authorized that. So if it did happen with complicity of the US CIA principally, maybe NSA and Mossad,

then it probably happened underneath Donald Trump's knowledge. That's becoming very worrisome because I think a lot of things now, especially things of security context, are happening without Donald Trump knowing the full story or maybe not knowing any story at all. And then the second thing I would say is that you're looking at a situation here where I think we've got some really out of control people. Let me back up for just a second and say I was listening to Bill Burns this morning because he was the first speaker extolling at the Naval Academy, Rich Armitage, who we were

having a memorial ceremony for basically, and I was listening to Bill at the same time I was thinking about what Bill had been involved in over the last couple of years if not further, and listening to his remarks and knowing what he'd been involved in, I understand fundamentally just how out of control the United States intelligence community is. So fundamental answer to your question is, I don't think the president knows the half of what the agencies are doing. And I don't think Tulsi Gabbard does either. Chris, I don't think it's on today's list, but do we still have the comments of President Trump Sunday evening? I think it was at Marstown Airport in which he was asked if he knew about the attempt on President Putin's life.

And he said, this is the first I've heard of it. Chris will look for it. And I'd like you to see it. Sure. Colonel, and you can judge for yourself if President Trump was just knew about it, was just trying to downplay it or really didn't know. But I have to tell you, I'm just a simple lawyer, you're the military guy. I think you're 110% correct if he did not know it. If CIA or DIA or any one of the American Intel entities participated in any way in an attempt

to kill Vladimir Putin, those guys should be fired and may be prosecuted. And the president is not being served well and the American public is not being served well if something of that magnitude can be attempted without the president's direct written authorization. You're entirely correct. They should be frog-marched to the gallows in Hong. I mean, can you imagine if they killed General Soleimani? This is the last time around.

I think it was horrible that they did that, but at least they did it with the president's approval. It wasn't done behind his back. It should be occasioned by a presidential finding, which is formally arrived at and executed. If they did it without that, they don't have a get out of jail free card if Trump finds out about it. Here is Trump being asked in the Morristown airport in New Jersey on Sunday, if he knew about it.

Yeah, I'll give you an update. I'm not happy with what Putin's doing. He's killing a lot of people and I don't know what the hell happened to Putin. I've known him a long time, always gotten along with him, but he's sending rockets into cities and killing people. And I don't like it at all. Okay. We're in the middle of talking and he's shooting rockets into Kiev and other cities. I don't like it at all. Okay? We're in the middle of talking and he's shooting rockets into Kiev and other cities.

I don't like it at all. I'm surprised. I'm very surprised. We'll see what we're going to do. What am I going to tell you? You're the fake news, aren't you? You're totally fake. All right, any other questions?

I don't like what Putin is doing, not even a little bit. He's killing people. And something happened to this guy, and I don't like what Putin is doing, not even a little bit. He's killing people. And something happened to this guy, and I don't like it. And can I follow up on that? A Russian commander reportedly said that Putin was almost caught in the middle of a drone attack from Ukraine. So do you have any... I haven't heard that, but maybe that would be a reason. I don't know, but I have not heard that. What do you think? How could he possibly have not heard that?

And how could a president, even Donald Trump, who is not very well informed, stand up there in front of the cameras and say that Putin is killing civilians and bombing them and rocket eating them and so forth, when Bibi Netanyahu is killing 75 to 100 every day and has been for about 600, 700 days, endlessly, relentlessly and barbarically killing people, when Donald Trump having been inaugurated as President of the United States could stop that with a single order. I don't think that he thinks about these things, to be honest with you. I mean, how many civilians did he kill in Yemen in the past three months for no moral, political, or military purpose. Good point. Good point, Judge, but at least he stopped that.

Yeah, yeah, he did. He did. Colonel, is the Ukrainian military close to collapse? Yes. The only thing that's holding them up is Russia's reluctance to finish them off. And I don't blame them for having reluctance. I've said this before. If they do go further, with the possible exception of just extending their southern line to Odessa, if they go any further than that, then they're going to buy the problem of having Ukrainian mercenaries, Ukrainian guerrillas, the worst in the world,

partisans, call them what you will, in their midst from now into eternity. Now, here's something I heard the other day, and this makes a lot of sense to me, a lot of sense to me. Putin talks to Warsaw, and he talks to a couple of other capitals that are allegedly NATO capitals and he says I know your history and I know how you lust for that portion of Ukraine that used to be yours Mmm, and how about if I make a deal with you? This is a very plausible scenario and indeed Sergei Lavrov and Putin may be working on that right now. I think Warsaw would bite for one. So you wind up with some rear protection if you will,

because you sign secret protocols with people who are going to occupy that rear on Ukrainian territory, which they think very much and history supports them in some regard, is their territory, and you have a buttress. Colonel, you might be breaking news here. I had not heard that or seen it anywhere. Today's Thursday, on Tuesday, Reuters reported that Russia has amassed, they haven't attacked yet, 50,000 troops in Northeast Ukraine. When I asked General, or excuse me, Colonel, Colonel McGregor, if he knew of this, he said to me,

Reuters is wrong. It's 100,000 troops. Good God, what could 100,000 troops do? They could march to Keeve, couldn't they? Well, that was a good slip up you made. He ought to be a general. Ha ha ha. Along with several other people who should be. Like the person to whom I'm now speaking. Wow. Yeah, I agree. And I don't know precisely why he's concentrating them where he's concentrating them, if the

intelligence is accurate. But I could see possibly an operation to roll up the northern part of the line. But that would seem to me to be a precursor to a move on Keefe itself. And I don't see why he would want to do that yet. Is there pressure on him to bring this to an end or stated differently, Colonel Wilkerson, is Putin losing patience with the pace of the war? I have no doubt he's frustrated to that extent. But I think the thing pressing him is he knows there are people who are willing to step in, if you will,

and press it even harder, press it right up to the brink of nuclear weapons if possible. And so he's trying to fight that off, his own right wing, you might call it. At the same time, he's trying to salvage as much as he possibly can of a potential of a new relationship with Washington I think that's his ultimate goal and he's been thwarted in that goal in almost every respect even by this new president Who said it was his goal too. So now he's very frustrated because he can't figure Trump out

Here's what Trump said eight hours after Trump out. Here's what Trump said eight hours after the statement at Morris Airport from the comfort of the White House on his truth social. I'll read it. I've always had a very good relationship with Vladimir Putin of Russia but something has happened to him and he has gone absolutely crazy, Colonel, as you can see in caps. He is needlessly killing a lot of people, and I'm not just talking about soldiers. Missiles and drones are being shot at the cities in Ukraine for no reason whatsoever. I've always said that he wants all in caps of Ukraine, not just a piece of it. And maybe that's proving to be right, but if he does, it will lead to the downfall of Russia.

Likewise, President Zelensky is doing his country no favors by talking the way he does. Everything out of his mouth causes problems. I don't like it and it better stop. This is a war that would never have started if I were president. This is Zelensky's, Putin's and Biden's war, not Trump's. I'm only helping to put out the big and mobile fires that have been started through gross incompetence and hatred.

I wanna concentrate on the two words in caps, calling the president of Russia crazy in caps and suggesting that the goal of the Kremlin is the acquisition of all of Ukraine. Well, look at that again. Kremlin care the acquisition of all of Ukraine. Well, look, look at that. The Kremlin cared that Trump calls Putin crazy. Does that go in one ear and out the other? Well, look at that again and read the first dinner, 12 lines.

And Putin's saying the same thing, almost verbatim about Trump. It meets Trump. It characterizes him as well as Putin. I think he's frustrated. I do think Putin is frustrated because you've got, just going back to 2014, you have now 11 years of the United States' duplicity, lying, cheating, stealing, stealing or trying to steal a march on Moscow, multiple marches on Moscow.

I don't know how Putin thinks about any kind of coherent dealings with Washington at all anymore. I just know he probably wants that fundamentally important relationship, nuclear weapons is a part of that too, to be renewed in some positive way. But I think he's coming rapidly to the conclusion that the other side is not only not desirous of that, it's incoherent in what it is desirous of. And that's tough for a world leader to deal with. Wow. What about this argument that Putin wants all of Ukraine? I don't get it, unless this is a domestic political argument,

because when Putin ends up with just the four O blasts, Trump will take credit for saving the rest of Ukraine. Or is Intel feeding him more BS that Putin wants to take all of Ukraine. You argued earlier that's the last thing he wants. He can't afford it. Who wants to govern in an environment like that? He wants to govern the Russian parts of Ukraine.

You're absolutely right. That's his purpose. It's been his purpose all along to protect the Russians in Ukraine and those who wish to stay affiliated with Russia and to teach their kids the Russian language and the Russian culture. That's been his purpose all along. But I think we're forcing his hand and we're forcing his hand to go further than that. And he's very reluctant to do that because he's not a bad strategist like we are.

He knows what it will mean to go further. And he knows that there's a potential in there going further to start a war with NATO. And I've got to say right now, if it were to start, he'd win, it'd be bitter, and it would be nasty, and it would be terrible, it might even go nuclear. No one wins in that regard. But if it were to stay conventional, he'd probably win.

And how would Washington take that victory? Wow. Wow. Colonel, thank you very much. I'll leave it on that unpleasant but challenging note. Not that you're unpleasant, but the thought of that happening because it would involve a lot of a lot of deaths. We started with Mertz. I mean, he is not thinking about the natural and probable consequences of his decisions. I don't think he has the capacity to think that well. I really don't. He's trying to be a military professional or he's trying to be a, what was the guy's name? I can't, just Bismarck. He's trying to be a Bismarck and he is always. He's got a long way to go. Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson, a pleasure, my dear friend. I know you came from a funeral and rushed to be at the camera and the microphone

and we deeply appreciate it. All the best. We'll look forward to seeing you next week. Thank you. Same to you. Thank you. And coming up later today, not very much later at three o'clock, Professor John Mearsheimer at four o'clock, Chris thinks we found him, Max Blumenthal. And at five o'clock, from wherever on the planet he is, Professor Jeffrey Sachs, Judge Napolitano for Judging Freedom. MUSIC