Retired U.S. Army Lieutenant General and former National Security Advisor Herbert Raymond McMaster suggested that Russia’s war against Ukraine is closely tied to a broader campaign by a coalition of authoritarian states, which continue to support Moscow and share a goal of reshaping the global order toward an authoritarian model of governance.
He made this assessment in response to a question from an Ukrinform correspondent on Wednesday.
McMaster noted that North Korea, Iran, and China are among the countries supporting Russia’s war effort. He was commenting specifically on recent statements by the U.S. Secretary of Defense in Congress regarding the possibility of reducing American military aid to Ukraine.
McMaster recalled that even North Korea, often labeled a failed state, had reportedly provided Russia with military aid worth an estimated $40 billion, including six to eight million artillery shells and personnel. Iran, he added, had supplied drones to Russia. In return, these countries have received Russian technical support for their conventional weapons programs, missiles, and potentially even nuclear ambitions.
He also noted that China had been financing the Kremlin’s war efforts by purchasing Russian energy resources, thereby “fueling Putin’s ATM” and helping sustain Russia’s struggling economy. According to McMaster, China is also supplying equipment and spare parts to support Russia’s military machine.
He emphasized that those arguing the U.S. should shift focus to competing with China were missing the point. In his opinion, the confrontation with Beijing is inextricably linked to the outcome of the war in Ukraine. This, he said, was a point he would raise directly with the Secretary of Defense or anyone questioning continued support for Ukraine.
McMaster described this as a systemic challenge involving a coalition of aggressor states pursuing different strategies but united in their broader goal: dismantling the current world order and replacing it with a set of rules aligned with authoritarian governance.
In this context, he described the escalation in the Middle East in 2023 as a logical consequence of the U.S. becoming politically bogged down over Ukraine aid. He said it was no coincidence that this pause in assistance preceded the Hamas attack on Israel, Hezbollah’s involvement, and increased Iranian military activity in Syria.
He also added that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei interpreted the pause in American aid as a sign of weakened U.S. resolve. According to McMaster, if China were to perceive similar shifts in U.S. support for Ukraine, it could encourage Beijing to act more aggressively toward Taiwan and in the South China Sea.
Earlier this week, U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, appointed by President Trump earlier this year, told Congress that the current administration intends to scale back military aid to Ukraine.
Photo: Yaroslav Dovgopol
Source: General McMaster: Ukraine war outcome will shape strategy of aggressor axis
