China and Russia have been notably absent from the Middle Eastern conflict, after the U.S. and Israel launched joint attacks on Iran over the weekend. Both Russia and China have condemned the military action that killed Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, but haven’t been forthcoming with any support for their ally beyond verbal statements. What’s more, Iran shouldn’t expect either global power to come to its aid, said Trump’s former Commerce Secretary, Wilbur Ross.
Ross, who served the duration of the first Trump administration, believes the president’s military campaign in Iran has been a relative success so far, with key objectives achievable within the next month or so. More important, the display has demonstrated to global rivals how effective the U.S. military can be.
Speaking exclusively with Fortune, Ross said Iran “is going at least as well as anyone could have hoped,” adding he is “intrigued” by the fact that China and Russia had offered no intervention beyond statements. An invasion of the region by either party is highly unlikely, he said, “so the most they might possibly do would be provide equipment or funding.”
However, “Russia’s really not in much of a position to provide to Iran. And China, it’s quite unclear to me—other than trying somehow to continue their source of supply of energy and oil—I don’t see that China has a big vital interest in Iran anyway.”
