Robert M. Gates, former U.S. Secretary of Defense and CIA Director, recently shared his insights on critical national security issues, ranging from internal agency management to geopolitical threats. At 81, gates brings a wealth of experience to bear on current challenges facing the nation.

Internal Agency Concerns: Firings and Future Leadership

Addressing recent government firings, particularly within the Intelligence Community, Gates expressed concern about the dismissal of probationary employees. He emphasized the importance of these individuals for the future of these organizations.

The one thing that I would say concerns me, both at CIA and at the Defense Department, are the firings of probationary employees… This is the future of these organizations.
Robert M. Gates

Gates acknowledged the need for agency reform and efficiency but cautioned against actions that could jeopardize the future by prematurely dismissing needed personnel. He stated that most agencies should be reformed and should be made more lean and more efficient, but there’s a way to do it that doesn’t shortcut the future and also doesn’t end up firing people that actually are really needed.

Diversity, Warrior Ethos, and Military Readiness

When questioned about criticisms of the focus on “diversity issues” versus a “warrior and war fighting ethos,” Gates underscored the importance of taking care of personnel as a core aspect of military readiness.

My view is that a big part of the warrior ethos is taking care of your people. Every Second Lieutenant learns that first thing…having a focus on being combat ready, on fitness, on those kinds of things absolutely makes sense.
Robert M.Gates

He also addressed the integration of women into various military roles, emphasizing that standards should not be compromised.The expectations for women need to be exactly the same as they are for men and so a focus on that kind of meritocracy, I think, also makes sense.

Gates further noted the importance of the military reflecting the diversity of the American population. I think you also have to remember the military needs to look like the American people, and it does. And you can call it whatever you want, but we are better served, in my view, by a military that reflects the American people, and I think it does at this point.

Pentagon Funding and Congressional Responsibility

Gates highlighted the critical need to address funding issues within the Pentagon, emphasizing that the Department of Defense requires adequate resources to maintain necessary capabilities. He criticized Congress for the lack of a budget going into the fiscal year for the past 15 years,calling it a dereliction of duty. He explained that when you have a continuing resolution, you can’t start anything new, you can’t add to anything.

China’s Naval Expansion

Addressing the growing naval gap between the U.S. and China, Gates pointed to China’s rapid shipbuilding expansion. He noted that between 2017 and 2024, the number of warships in our navy stayed essentially flat. During that same period, China launched 150 warships. They have 250 times the ship-building capability we do…So if we’re going to fix that, somebody’s got to get off the dime.

Middle east Opportunities and Challenges

Gates sees potential opportunities for the U.S. in the Middle East, particularly with countries focused on economic diversification and modernization. I think, ironically, the Middle East may be one place where there are some real opportunities and possibilities [for the U.S.], he stated. I think that Saudi Arabia,Qatar,the UAE [United Arab Emirates]are all so focused on diversifying their economies,reforming,modernizing,bringing their populations into the 21st century. It’s a place to do business, for China, for the United States, for everybody else.

He also believes that Israel’s actions following the 2023 Hamas attack have significantly weakened Iran by dismantling Hamas, a known proxy. While not addressing the destruction in Gaza, Gates commented on the political challenges of cutting off military supplies to Israel. It would be a very heavy political lift for the President to say he’s going to cut off military supplies to israel, unless they stop in Gaza. He added, it would be very difficult for any U.S. president,I think,to say we’re just going to cut Israel off from military supplies.

China’s Aggression and Taiwan

Turning to China, Gates expressed concern over Beijing’s increasing aggression in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea.I think they put themselves in a position, if they chose to do so, to put essentially a stranglehold around Taiwan in terms of shipping and so on.

Russia and Putin’s Ambitions

Regarding Russia and President Vladimir Putin,Gates believes Putin aims to recreate the Russian Empire. My own view, having dealt with him and having spent most of my life working on Russia and the Soviet Union, is Putin feels that he has a destiny to recreate the Russian Empire. He quoted Zbigniew Brzezinski, stating, without Ukraine, there can be no Russian Empire.

Gates noted Putin’s unwavering demands regarding Ukraine, including territorial concessions and preventing NATO membership. He wants Ukraine, basically, to be a client state of Russia and is willing to make significant sacrifices to achieve this.

He highlighted the reorientation of the Russian economy towards the military-industrial complex, drawing parallels to the Soviet era. The complete reorientation of the economy for the military industrial complex, as you will, it is indeed very much what the Soviets did in many respects. Despite positive growth, Gates believes the economy’s strength is artificial.

Gates anticipates future challenges for Putin due to declining oil and gas revenues, as Western technology used for extraction is no longer available. The problem that Putin has is over time, those are old oil and gas fields, and what was enabling the Russians to extract from those fields was Western technology…That’s all gone. So over time, the revenue stream from oil and gas from Russia is going to diminish, and probably fairly dramatically, but it’ll take time.