Mike Pompeo on the US-Iran war, the Gulf and why the alternative to a free Strait of Hormuz is unthinkable

Mike Pompeo, a West Point graduate, Harvard Law Review editor, and former manufacturing entrepreneur, has served as both CIA director and secretary of state under President Donald Trump. In his role, he has been a key architect of the Abraham Accords. Speaking to Manus Cranny in New York after attending Senator Lindsey Graham's funeral, Pompeo clarifies that the current conflict is not just a Middle East war, but a global one, involving Iran, China, and Russia under a unified axis.

He argues that the Gulf states will eventually align with the US to inflict a decisive defeat on Iran's military. Economic sanctions have already begun to visibly impact the lives of Iranians, though the full extent remains unseen from the outside. Pompeo outlines a potential roadmap for ending the conflict.

The Netanyahu-Trump relationship is also addressed, along with the potential for regime change in Iran. Pompeo discusses the Abraham Accords as a possible model for unity in the post-war Gulf region. He questions the feasibility of a two-state solution in today's context. Finally, Pompeo identifies the greatest risk beyond the Gulf: the Western civilization's waning confidence in itself.