Eric Campbell

Yeah, but on the same hand, if there's any strategic sense in taking over Taiwan, it's to prevent Taiwan doing anything to restrict China's access because they're very paranoid about maintaining their sea access to the Pacific, which goes through Taiwan and past Japan.

And that is some strategic justification, if you like, for...

taking action against Taiwan.

But I think the greater problem is what happened in Ukraine, where there was absolutely no sense in invading Ukraine.

It happened because Russia now has a dictator, Vladimir Putin, who wanted to, and he decided.

Xi Jinping is, I hope, not as crazy as Putin is, but he has also regained that one-person power that Mao Zedong once had by effectively getting rid of the collective leadership that came about after Mao Zedong to make sure that no dictator could ever

cause such misery and anxiety.

He's made himself effectively emperor for life or Mao Zedong for life.

So should he decide it's in his legacy, he can actually make that strategically disastrous decision and make it happen.

This is the problem of living in a world with strongmen in Russia, China and the US now.

It's the only time as a journalist where I've been part of what I call a conversation around the country.

I've done all these very worthy geopolitical stories that have just...

flown off into the ether, never to be thought of again.

But this one I seem to have, you know, got the pub talk.

And that makes me proud.

Not since I worked on A Current Affair many years ago have I had that experience of being an Aussie bloke on TV, just telling it like it is.

If you want to try it after this, Matt, I can show you how to attach it.

And if I can just add one last thing, as I was leaving, the man said, look, we have a version for women too if you're interested.

And that's when I thought, no.

No, thank you.