Futurist Reporter and Founder of Meet The Future Website Kevin Cirilli Interview

Kevin gives his take on what could happen at today's summit with Putin and Trump. Today's meeting could shape how we deal with wars throughout the world. Kevin has been studying US and Russia relations for many years. 

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
You've heard Kevin SURRELLI with us a lot. He's a
futurist reporter and he's founder of Meet the Future website.
And we've always talked to him about tech or the
space program or Roberts Roberts robots or AI. You know,
we've always talked to him about the future. But what
we didn't know about Kevin surreally until he told us this,

(00:22):
and we should have known it, was that he is
a specialist on US Russian relations. As a matter of fact,
he was on the ground that the Trump putin Helsinki
summit in twoenty eighteen. I guess this is when he
worked for Bloomberg as the chief Washington correspondent, But it
goes back even further than that. He has been studying

(00:44):
Russian US relations for well over a decade. So with that,
with that introduction, we bring in Kevin SURRELLI not talking
to him about the future, talking to him about what's
happening right now. Ken, thank you, I appreciate that. I'm
going to give you just an open floor. Here. Tell

(01:06):
me what you see happening today.

Speaker 2 (01:10):
Well, I think President Trump has the upper hand heading
into the conversations. And here's why. I remember being in Helsinki,
and it was a very different domestic political reality for
President Trump back in twenty eighteen. This was really smack
in the middle of the Russia investigations and the scrutiny
that Trump was receiving for his relationship and ties to Russia.

(01:35):
Flash forward to twenty twenty five today, and what's going
to happen in Alaska in a couple of hours. Vladimir
Putin has lost in his s thuggish war against Ukraine
more than one million Russian lives. The staggering loss of
life for his decision to go into war and miscalculate

(01:55):
and think that the Ukrainians would just roll over. It
can't be over state enough. Ukraine has lost more than
one hundred thousand lives. So you've got the death toll,
which is incomprehensible. And then separately from that, you have
these long term economic implications. The US has deployed significant

(02:16):
crippling sanctions against Moscow. If you're Vladimir Putin and you
are going to pull a stunt today on US soil
in Alaska, that is President Trump's finger is on the
economic trigger, so to speak, with even ratcheting that up further.
The Russian economy is horrible right now as a result

(02:37):
of these sanctions, and they have staggering loss of life. Now,
when you look at why the US should care about Ukraine,
one you don't want to have a thug marching through Europe.
But secondly, you also look at the long term rare
earth mineral play that the US wants to have a

(02:58):
role in for decades to come in to the future.

Speaker 1 (03:01):
There are some reports that President Trump is willing to
give up some of those rare earth minerals, not only
in Ukraine but in Alaska to Russia to help make
this deal. Have you heard that? Does that make sense
to you? And is it a good idea?

Speaker 2 (03:19):
Well, well, I would strongly disagree with any concession of
Alaska and whatnot, But I think that Trump has signaled
that he is very much willing to make some type
of a deal as it relates to the longer term.
But from the pre deal I like to call it.

(03:41):
We all remember the disastrous meeting for Zelensky in the
Oval Office and the image that came out of the
Oval Office following the disaster. I mean remember that the
images they were growing up at each other and whatnot.
But shortly After that, the Ukrainians and the Russian and
the Americans were able to get to some type of
an out line framework deal that would give the US

(04:02):
a longer economic ties in Ukraine for the future. Why
should the average listener care about that, Well, because Ukraine's
rare earth minerals are so incredibly important, not just for
machinery on land, but for satellite production up and outer
space as well. And so for the US to be
able to serve as a backstop economically on the economic warfront,

(04:23):
because we are an economic war against Russia, it also
is good for Europe, who would have to look elsewhere
if Russia continues to march through Ukraine and elsewhere into Europe.

Speaker 1 (04:35):
But on the Russian side of this, Vladimir Putin can't
go away empty handed because he is already facing some
criticism in his own country, and if he were to
give up too much and go back to Russia, he's finished.

Speaker 2 (04:52):
Well. And in addition to that, I totally agree with that.
And in addition to that, for Putin, I think a
win would be getting the US to signal they would
be willing to loosen some of the economic sanctions, because
it's not just Putin I mean, he's an authoritarian, and
so he's crippled his own economy. He's lost a million lives.

(05:13):
It's horrible. But the oligarchs surrounding him and the wealthy
aristocrats surrounding him, they have a lot of financial exposure
right now as a result of all of the sanctions
that the US has deployed and the shifts in the
global economy. A lot of folks are, to your point,
talking about Zolenski's absence. But I want to mention another

(05:34):
factor of this, and that's who also is going to
be watching carefully. But isn't there the Chinese Communist Party Shijingping.
I called them Larry the totalitarian twins Putin and She,
and what they've been doing the last few months is
running military drills off the coast of Alaska. I mean,
just think of how brazen that is for Putin and
She to be conducting military drills off the coast of Alaska.

(05:56):
So if you're Shijingping, you're watching this because any weakening
of the bromance between She and Putin is in the
US interests to weaken that dynamic between those two. But
separately from that, if you're China or forget China. If
you're an American who has I would assume that none
of your listeners have economic exposure in their portfolios to Russia.

(06:20):
But if they do have any economic risk and exposure
to the Chinese Communist Party companies, the playbook that the
US has deployed against Russia with sanctions and whatnot is,
I would argue the same playbook that the US will
deploy should she Zingping pull up Putin and invade Taiwan.
So I would look at my portfolio.

Speaker 1 (06:38):
Wow, Kevin, that was excellent. Would love to talk to
you again after these talks so you can tell us
what happens next. Kevin's a really futurist reporter and founder
of Meet the Future website, and, as we just found out,
an expert on US Russian relations. Kevin, have a good day.
Thanks again, Thank you my friend buddy,