EU has to choose between Iran and US: Bolton
President Donald Trump's hawkish national security adviser says the Europeans have to make a choice between the US and Iran in observing American sanctions which he claims have been more effective than expected.
“We expect that Europeans will see, as businesses all over Europe are seeing, that the choice between doing business with Iran or doing business with the United States is very clear to them," National Security Adviser John Bolton said Tuesday.
Trump “wants maximum pressure on Iran, maximum pressure, and that is what is going on,” Bolton told Reuters in Israel.
US administration officials have said newly re-imposed sanctions are meant to change Iran’s policies, including its role in the region, making a point that they are not aimed at toppling the Islamic Republic.
Bolton boasted that the sanctions are “already having a significant effect on Iran's economy,” but admitted that they have not led to any change in the country’s policies.
“I think the effects, the economic effects certainly, are even stronger than we anticipated," he said. "But Iranian activity in the region has continued to be belligerent,” he added, citing Iran’s role in Iraq, Syria and the Persian Gulf.