In the War between the USA and Israel on the one hand and Iran on the other, the Ukrainians are in danger of becoming the big losers. The fact that the world public is turning its gaze from Europe to the Middle East is not even the biggest dilemma for Ukraine. The danger for Ukraine is much greaterr that Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump could conclude a standstill deal.

Bolton: “There could be a military deal between Trump and Putin”

In a nutshell, Putin’s offer to Trump could be: If you stop helping Ukraine, I won’t help Iran. This would mean that the countries would no longer carry out military reconnaissance work. The Russians are no longer for the Iranians and the Americans are no longer for the Ukrainians. “The fact that Russia is helping Iran is a serious matter,” says John Robert Bolton. “There could therefore be a military deal between Trump and Putin. That would cause lasting damage to Ukraine.”

War in Iran endangers the existence of Ukraine

John Robert Bolton, whose recorded interview with Maybrit Illner is played in her talk, is a Republican like Donald Trump and was the US President’s National Security Advisor from April 2018 until his resignation in September 2019. He explains that Trump loves deals and that he can imagine that Trump would accept such an offer from Putin. Especially since the Russian president could also threaten to supply Iran with more military drones. The fact that Trump is not averse to such a deal is also shown by his considerations of easing oil sanctions against Russia because the rising price of gasoline is affecting Americans at home. The US Congress will be elected in November. Foreign policy quickly becomes domestic policy. The war must therefore be ended quickly and successfully.

Donald Trump’s war aim remains nebulous

“It’s not clear to me what Trump is doing,” explains security expert Bolton. Years ago he tried to convince Donald Trump that Iran was producing a nuclear bomb and that military intervention would therefore be necessary there. “I didn’t make it back then,” says the American. “I’m not sure Trump himself knows what he’s doing.” Some experts even assume that Trump allowed himself to be drawn into the war against Iran by Benjamin Netanyahu. Israel’s Prime Minister sensed the “opportunity of the century” to permanently destroy the Iranian regime. Trump’s war aim remains nebulous. Trump’s sudden penchant for the military is equally astonishing. “Yes, that is surprising,” says John Robert Bolton. “You need a psychiatrist to determine why.”

US President failed to inform allies

“It’s difficult to say anything about the end of the war,” said CDU foreign policy expert Armin Laschet in Maybrit Illner’s group. Sometimes President Trump talks about three or four weeks, sometimes it should go faster when things are difficult domestically because of oil. That changes every day.” This is also why security expert Bolton warns that Donald Trump should have prepared the American people better for war. “Donald Trump should have explained it to the people. But he preferred not to prepare the people, the Congress and the allies for it.” But that would have been important “for what would happen if the regime collapsed.”

Securing nuclear sites after the war in Iran

US President Donald Trump had repeatedly stated that he was waging this war to minimize the threat, especially from the Iranian nuclear program. But he didn’t discuss how he wanted to secure the radioactive material in Iran, nor did he discuss the period after the war. However, simply bringing the material out of the country is hardly possible, Bolton now explains. “It’s hard to get rid of that with a helicopter.” Therefore, once the war is over, the locations must be secured and thus prevent the material from falling into the hands of terrorists or the Revolutionary Guard, who then sell it to other countries. Bolton explains: “You should not take the enriched material out of the country, but rather secure it locally.”