Brian Berletic: The New Great Game – War Against Iran, Russia & China

The conversation with Brian Berletic, a former US Marine and geopolitical analyst, centers on the United States’ strategic approach to maintaining global primacy by waging indirect and direct conflicts against Russia, Iran, and China. Berletic argues that the US is not genuinely seeking balanced power relations but instead aims for hegemonic dominance, employing diplomacy as a tool to justify aggressive policies rather than pursue peace. The US is engaged in a multi-theater economic and proxy war to weaken potential rivals who could challenge its declining influence, particularly focusing on disrupting key alliances and trade routes that connect Eurasian powers.

Berletic highlights the US strategy of undermining and fragmenting alliances such as the Eurasian Economic Union, targeting countries through proxy wars and economic blockades—like those in Ukraine, the Middle East, and Asia—to maintain control by destabilization. A critical component of US strategy involves controlling maritime chokepoints such as the Strait of Malacca and the Strait of Hormuz to limit the flow of energy resources to China and constrain its growth. The US is willing to inflict significant damage not only on adversaries but also on its allies to force dependence on American energy exports and military protection.

The dialogue also addresses the US’s rhetoric versus its actions on issues like Taiwan, emphasizing that despite diplomatic affirmations of the One China policy, the US continues to militarize and politicize Taiwan as part of a regional containment strategy against China. Berletic portrays China as committed to a multipolar world and peace, building military capacity for deterrence rather than domination, contrasting with the US’s aggressive hegemony.

Finally, the discussion warns of growing risks, including the possibility of regional and broader conflicts escalating into direct military confrontations, potentially involving nuclear options. The US is portrayed as increasingly desperate to maintain global dominance, willing to provoke chaos worldwide, despite its unsustainable financial and geopolitical position. The multipolar world represented by Russia, China, and Iran offers resistance, but the outcome depends on their ability to sustain growth and cooperation faster than the US can incapacitate them.

Highlights

• [01:15] 🛡️ US diplomacy used as a pretext for war, not peace.
• [03:18] ⚖️ US seeks global primacy, not balance of power.
• [10:14] 🚢 US employing global naval blockades to control energy supplies.
• [17:58] ⛴️ US strike-and-turnback tactics disrupting Iranian shipping.
• [28:31] 🔀 US strategy viewed as a continuation of the “Great Game” to keep Eurasia divided.
• [34:10] 🇹🇼 US undermining One China policy, using Taiwan as geopolitical leverage.
• [45:43] 🚨 US increasingly engaging in hybrid wars against China through proxies and technology.

Key Insights

• [01:44] 🎭 Diplomacy as a Facade for Conflict: US diplomatic engagements with China, Russia, and Iran do not aim for resolution but to manufacture excuses for deeper military and economic conflicts. This instrumental use of diplomacy fuels proxy wars and escalations, reinforcing US global dominance rather than fostering international stability.

• [03:18] 🏛️ Primacy Over Balance: Contrary to traditional offshore balancing aimed at maintaining equilibrium among powers, the US pursues unequivocal primacy, seeking to dismantle rising centers of power before they can genuinely challenge American hegemony. This aggressive approach creates instability and fractures potential alliances among adversaries.

• [10:14] 🌐 Maritime Chokehold Strategy: Controlling key maritime corridors such as the Strait of Malacca and the Strait of Hormuz allows the US to disrupt energy supplies crucial to Eurasian economic integration, particularly between Russia and China. This strategy seeks to weaponize global trade routes to weaken adversaries economically, reflecting historic patterns of naval power underpinning empire.

• [17:58] ⚓ Contested Maritime Enforcement Tactics: The US employs a form of partial blockade—disabling some ships while forcing others to turn back—maintaining leverage without fully disrupting maritime commerce, thereby exerting economic pressure on Iran and its partners without provoking uncontrolled conflict, representing calculated coercion.

• [28:31] 🌍 Modern “Great Game”: The current geopolitical competition is a highly evolved continuation of the 19th-century “Great Game,” with the US aiming to prevent Eurasian unification through economic, military, and technological means. This multipronged effort is designed to keep Russia, Iran, and China fragmented or subordinate, protecting US global authority.

• [34:10] 🇺🇸🇨🇳 Taiwan as a Strategic Pawn: Despite affirmations of the One China policy, the US systematically undermines Chinese sovereignty over Taiwan by militarizing the island and backing secessionist agendas, using Taiwan as a forward base to constrain China’s regional influence, reflecting a deliberate duplicity in US foreign policy.

• [45:43] ⚔️ Hybrid and Proxy Warfare Against China: The US is conducting a global “dirty war” using proxies, covert operations, and economic disruption targeting Chinese investments and infrastructure, especially related to the Belt and Road Initiative. This multi-domain approach reflects an asymmetrical strategy to contain China’s rise without full-scale open warfare.

• [21:56] ⏳ Race Between Reconstruction and Destabilization: The crucial contest is whether China, Russia, and Iran can build and integrate their economies faster than the US can destabilize them through military pressure and economic warfare. This dynamic underpins much of current global tension and will shape the near-term balance of power.

• [32:58] 💡 End of the ‘Benign Hegemon’ Era: The earlier hope that US global primacy could be a stabilizing force is obsolete; China’s rise exposed the fragility of the unipolar system. Preserving hegemony now requires aggressive containment and warfare, stripping away any pretense of benign global leadership.

• [46:16] ☢️ Escalating Risks of Nuclear and Conventional War: Increasing public rhetoric among US and European officials about potential nuclear options signals dangerously heightened risk levels. The potential for miscalculation or escalation into direct warfare is a significant concern given the unresolved proxy conflicts and antagonisms.

• [23:33] 🚧 Belt and Road Initiative Under U.S. Attack: China’s infrastructure projects designed to bypass US-controlled maritime routes are under constant assault by US-backed proxies and militants, reflecting the broader effort to contain China’s economic influence and disrupt Eurasian connectivity.

• [44:16] 🤝 Military Alliances as Instruments of Hegemony: The US integration of regional allies into NATO-style military frameworks, with interoperability and command controlled by Washington, restricts their sovereignty and cements their role as proxies against China, exemplifying US efforts to maintain dominance through alliance coercion.

• [38:08] ⚖️ China’s Non-Hegemonic Intent: Contrary to US fears, China is building military capacity mostly for deterrence and a vision of multipolar cooperation rather than seeking to impose unilateral global dominance. This distinction contrasts with the US’s imperial ambitions and underlies much of the ideological tension.

• [30:55] 🔥 Unsustainability of Empire: The US global empire is deemed irrational and unsustainable, driven by profit and decline, generating immense destruction in hopes of retaining power. The damage wrought, especially in the Middle East and Eurasia, will likely surpass any temporary strategic gains.

Conclusion

This comprehensive dialogue offers a penetrating analysis of US strategic objectives and tactics in the current multipolar world order. It reveals a systemic US approach centered on preserving dominance through destabilization, proxy wars, economic blockades, and alliance manipulation. Meanwhile, Russia, China, and Iran resist with economic integration projects and military deterrence, striving for a more balanced and multipolar international system. The overarching theme is a high-stakes contest between declining imperial power and rising contenders, with grave implications for global peace and security.