John Bolton says Iran is playing Trump, knows he's 'desperate' for a deal

Former National Security Adviser John Bolton is not happy about the ongoing negotiations between the United States and Iran, accusing President Donald Trump of being "palpably desperate" for a peace deal and claiming a "victory" and consequently lowering the gasoline prices. He told CNN that the U.S. should take unilateral military action to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and negate Iran's leverage once and for all.

Bolton, who previously served as the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, hopes for the negotiations to break down because he believes that the U.S has inflicted "significant damage" upon Iran. "The ceasefire was a mistake. I think these negotiations are a mistake. We're on the verge of something that history will decide was a catastrophic loss for the United States," he lamented, suggesting that the only way for deterrence was to continue squeezing Iran financially.

Bolton, who has advocated for an Iranian regime change in the past, accused President Donald Trump of appearing too eager for a diplomatic win with Iran. He claims Tehran is aware of that desperation and is looking to exploit it, stalling talks, running out the clock, and extracting concessions while giving up nothing. Iran isn't negotiating in good faith in Bolton's view; it's buying time as Trump looks to wrestle the narrative over this unpopular war in his favor.

When asked about whether Iran's concession to hand over its enriched uranium stockpile will count as success, Bolton, a known foreign policy hawk, said that Iran keeps kicking the discussion around its nuclear program down the road. "This is what Iran wants. They want more time. Sixty days turns into six months, and then it turns into more than that," he explained, implying that a "diplomatic deal" offers Iran a chance to back out of it in the future.

Bolton also dismissed Trump's recent Truth Social posts on the ongoing negotiations as "salesmanship" lacking substance. "He (Trump) is somebody who has spent his whole life making deals with people. He thinks everybody wants to make a deal on just about anything. That's not what these people are into. They're stretching him out. They're buying time," Bolton concluded, adding that Trump was ignoring America's strategic interests.

Most foreign policy hawks, including those from within GOP ranks, remain skeptical of the White House's concessions to Iran in the peace deal, arguing that the proposed deal expands Tehran's leverage more than it had before the start of the joint U.S.-Israeli military offensive. Rick Wilson, a political consultant and co-founder of the Lincoln Project, characterized the concessions as a "total capitulation to Iran," rendering the war effort meaningless.

A peace deal was announced after a Saturday call involving the U.S., Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Jordan, Türkiye, Bahrain, and Pakistan. Trump said that "final aspects and details" are currently under discussion, and an announcement is "due soon." The President posted another update on Monday, revealing that the negotiations were "proceeding nicely" and that the U.S. will enter either a "great deal" or "no deal at all."