‘Iran war is Europe’s war’, says former Trump security advisor

Published connected 19/03/2026 - 20:20 GMT+1•Updated 20:22

Europe’s stance connected the Iran warfare risks US President Donald Trump walking distant from the struggle successful Ukraine, his erstwhile nationalist information advisor, John Bolton, has said, criticising the EU’s absorption to the concern successful the Middle East.

In an interrogation with Euronews, Bolton, who besides antecedently served arsenic the US’s ambassador to the UN, branded the Iran struggle arsenic “Europe’s war.”

“Europe is conscionable arsenic much, if not more, astatine hazard from atomic attacks if Iran gets atomic weapons,” said Bolton. “It has the rocket capableness to deed Central and Eastern Europe – not the United States.”

He warned that EU leaders could beryllium handing an “invitation” to Trump to determine that “Ukraine is not America’s war,” branding the deficiency of governmental volition crossed the bloc to partake successful the warfare connected Iran arsenic a “mistake.”

His comments came arsenic the US-Israeli warfare successful Iran, which has spilt implicit into different Middle Eastern countries, approaches its 4th week. European leaders person been reluctant to articulation successful the warfare effort, amid repeated disapproval from Trump, who said helium was “shocked” by their deficiency of enactment and has warned that NATO allies are making a “foolish mistake” by not doing more.

Bolton, who has been a vocal professional of some Trump’s overseas argumentation successful his 2nd mandate and the menace posed by Iran, said that the US president’s eventual extremity successful Iran is authorities change.

“Trump volition state a triumph nary substance what happens, and the statement volition beryllium that the atomic weapons programme has been acceptable backmost further, that enactment for planetary coercion has been acceptable backmost further,” Bolton said. “But if the authorities survives, nevertheless overmuch harm has been done to it, it volition physique back, and the atomic menace and coercion menace volition simply return.”

Bolton spoke to Euronews via video telephone connected the sidelines of a crunch EU acme successful Brussels, arsenic leaders gathered to sermon the warfare successful the Middle East, the looming vigor crisis, and Hungary’s veto connected a €90 cardinal indebtedness for Ukraine.

Watch the afloat interrogation successful the video subordinate above.