Bolton Says Iran ‘Played Trump Like a Violin’ to Secure Favorable US Deal

Former White House National Security Adviser John Bolton criticized the U.S.-Iran agreement, saying Tehran got the outcome it wanted. He argued the Trump administration ceded the upper hand in negotiations by putting oil-price stability and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz ahead of security and denuclearization. Bolton also faulted the administration for not disclosing key terms, including details on Iran’s nuclear program and the scope of sanctions relief.

Bolton made the remarks in an interview with Euronews on June 16, Yonhap News reported. Trump put economic concerns ahead of strategic considerations, Bolton said. “They played Trump like a violin and got the deal they wanted.”

Trump’s main concern was energy prices rather than the geopolitical significance of the agreement, Bolton said. The president was focused on reopening the Strait of Hormuz and returning Gulf crude to international markets to lower gasoline prices. Asked whether that amounted to trading U.S. national security for cheaper fuel, Bolton replied, “Basically, yes.”

Bolton also raised concerns about the lack of a public release of the full agreement. In any deal, the details matter more than the headline terms, he said. Major questions remain over Iran’s uranium-enrichment program, the scope of sanctions relief and how the Strait of Hormuz would actually be reopened. “If it were a great deal, it would already have been made public,” he said. “That says quite a lot.”

He also rejected the Trump administration’s claim that U.S. and Israeli airstrikes had fundamentally changed Iran’s leadership. “The only reason the leadership has changed is that we eliminated 400 to 500 people at the top of the regime,” Bolton said. The U.S. and its allies now have to deal with second-tier figures and aides. “The people may have changed, but it is still the same fanatical regime.”

Bolton also argued that Iran has spent 56 years saying it would not acquire nuclear weapons since joining the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty in 1970, but never truly intended to follow through.

Earlier, Trump said he would release a document detailing how Iran’s nuclear program would be verified after a formal signing ceremony for a U.S.-Iran peace agreement in Switzerland. Axios reported that Trump told reporters ahead of the Group of Seven summit in Evian, France, on June 15 that the full text would be released after the signing ceremony on June 19. Any sanctions relief for Iran would depend on implementation and conduct, he added.

The document is expected to include a verification framework for Iran’s nuclear facilities, an issue that has drawn broad international attention. U.S. officials have discussed placing Iran’s highly enriched uranium and the operation of its nuclear facilities under the supervision of the International Atomic Energy Agency and other international monitoring bodies. The Trump administration has repeatedly said it will never allow Iran to possess nuclear weapons.

Axios also reported that the U.S. and Iran had agreed on a basic framework to address the nuclear issue, with the draft calling for an additional 60 days of negotiations. During that period, Washington is seeking a system under which international inspectors would verify Iran’s nuclear activities.

Kang Kyung-ju, Hankyung.com reporter qurasoha@hankyung.com