National security adviser John Bolton said Tuesday that President Trump’s decision to withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal isn’t part of a broader plan to attack the country.
[FULL REMARKS: Trump’s announcement withdrawing from the Iran nuclear deal]
Bolton, a national security hawk considered by detractors to be too quick to support the use of military force, denied a plan to invade Iran following Trump’s televised speech ending U.S. participation in the deal.
A reporter told Bolton there was speculation that the decision was a “precursor to the U.S. putting boots on the ground in Iran.”
“They would be badly mistaken,” Bolton said at the off-camera briefing.
Bolton said he would be speaking with his French, German, and British counterparts on Wednesday as part of an effort to establish a new Iran nuclear deal.
Echoing Trump, Bolton said the U.S. seeks stricter limits on Iran’s nuclear and weapons programs and penalties for Iran’s support of factions in various Mideast conflicts.
