“Trump’s foreign policy is in chaos because the war party sabotages every attempt he makes to negotiate a peaceful settlement to areas of conflict,” E. Michael Jones, a political analyst in the US state of Indiana, told Tasnim.
Eugene Michael Jones is an American writer, former professor, media commentator and the current editor of Culture Wars magazine.
Following is the full text of the interview.
Tasnim: US President Donald Trump on Tuesday announced the firing of national security adviser John Bolton. What is the main reason behind this?
Jones: The immediate cause of his firing was Bolton’s sabotaging of the talks with the Taliban, but tensions between Trump and Bolton have been building because of one failure of American foreign policy after another, but the main reason is that Bolton was pushing for a war with Iran which Trump did not want.
Tasnim: Bolton denied being fired and insisted that he had resigned. Democratic Senator Jack Reed said that "Bolton was wrong for this job," but added that removing him "isn't going to fix the failures plaguing this administration's dysfunctional foreign policy." He further described the White House as being "in constant turmoil." It seems that the Trump administration is in chaos. What do you think?
Jones: Yes, Trump’s foreign policy is in chaos because the war party sabotages every attempt he makes to negotiate a peaceful settlement to areas of conflict.
Tasnim: Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin underlined that Trump and top aides remain "completely aligned" on Washington's sanctions against Iran. However, Rob Malley, president of the International Crisis Group consultancy, said Bolton's departure could realign White House policy on Afghanistan, Iran, North Korea and Venezuela. What are your thoughts on this?
Jones: Trump sees the sanctions as a means to bring Iran to the negotiating table. Mnuchin and the Israel lobby see them as a way of destroying Iran. That’s the difference between Trump and the Jews he has invited into his administration.