Episode Details

In this episode of Silk and Steel, Ahmad sits down with Carl Zha (geopolitical analyst and host of the Silk and Steel Podcast) to dissect the Iran war, US strategy to choke off China's energy, and why the empire looks increasingly like a paper tiger.

The big picture:

• The US has had a 30-year plan to control global oil flows and corner China (going back to the 2003 Iraq war)

• But having a plan and executing it competently are two very different things

• China has 1.4 billion barrels in strategic oil reserves – larger than the US, Europe, and Japan combined

• While the US Navy struggles to feed its sailors, China is lifting export bans on gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel

We break down:

• The "Clean Break" plan (1997) – the Israeli blueprint to remake the Middle East for the "Greater Israel" project

• Why seven US presidents resisted war with Iran – and why Trump didn't

• The Epstein files theory – why Israel may have compromising material on Trump

• How China prepared for this crisis while the US drained its strategic reserves

• The difference between heavy crude (Venezuela) and light sweet crude (Persian Gulf) – and why it matters

• Why the US Navy's food crisis is a symptom of a much larger logistics breakdown

• The fertilizer crisis – 20% of world's natural gas offline, planting season is NOW

Plus: The Top Gun: Persian Edition (Iranian pilots flying 60-year-old F-5 jets over US bases), why the "pivot to Asia" became a pivot to West Asia, and why China's energy independence is accelerating.

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