Retired U.S. Air Force Brigadier Gen. Blaine Holt on Thursday said he's "all for" sending signals of military readiness and strength to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping through actions such as the joint U.S. Army and Navy hypersonic missile tests held in Virginia on Wednesday, but he also wants to see that there is a diplomatic solution being sought for the increasingly dangerous war in Ukraine.
"We've got to send a message of military readiness, strength," Holt, also a Newsmax contributor, told the network's "Wake Up America" on Thursday. "I'm all for that. These are high-end weapons that we have, and they're coming up on status, and they need to be tested, and I'm happy to see readiness levels shown to the world that we have that strength."
However, Holt said that what he was hoping for is reports of "overtures of diplomacy, in a new forum that's created, or a dialogue hotline, something that starts to deescalate this very dangerous rhetoric that eventually could become real."
Holt also discussed the claims being made by Putin that Ukraine is creating dirty bombs, and said the Russian leader is "building a narrative."
"He's getting backed into a corner badly in Russia on all sides, and this is the danger," said Holt. "It creates this possibility for him to respond to his false flag."
The United States now has forces near Putin's, "and there is a definite spiraling path here, depending upon what his choices are," Holt added. "At the same time, some of his leaders on the battlefield are feeling a lot of heat from their people and are openly dissenting."
Meanwhile, Holt also questioned how the money the United States is providing for Ukraine is being spent after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday the House will try to pass a $60 billion aid package for Ukraine in December, and discussed the decision by progressive Democrats to pull back on a letter they'd written to President Joe Biden seeking a diplomatic solution to the war in Ukraine.
"You know, it's a symphony," Holt said. "This is the percussion section getting out of step with the orchestra conductor, and they put something out there that was absolutely not acceptable to the powers that be who have not made the overtures in diplomacy."
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