Believing Trump reflexively pro-Israel, anti-Iran 'misreads the man himself' – Bolton

Former US national security advisor John Bolton gave a special interview to i24NEWS' Christian Malard, discussing why the upcoming presidency of Donald Trump will be different from his last one.

"Those who believe that Trump will be reflexively pro-Israel and anti-Iran are misreading the man himself," he said on Sunday.

Regarding domestic policy, he said the incoming president will introduce a slew of controversial policies, including expelling illegal immigrants and raising tariffs.

Bolton also referred to an incident he described in his book, "The Room Where It Happened," when Trump was tempted to meet with former Iranian foreign ministry Mohammad Javad Zarif despite opposition from his advisors, including Bolton.

"For Trump, the temptation to make the deal of the century is very hard to resist. That's why he negotiated with North Korea's Kim Jong Un. He thinks that deals are discreet events – it's not that he's pursuing a policy, he just thinks he can just make a deal and, if it does, it will get him a lot of attention."

Regarding the arrest warrants against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant in the International Criminal Court, he said the US "should support the Israeli government fully in simply disregarding anything the ICC does."

Bolton scoffed at Trump's claim that he would be able to solve the Ukraine crisis in 24 hours, just by getting Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin together in a room.

Addressing Israelis and their fatigue over more than a year of war, Bolton affirmed that "support for Israel in the United States remains overwhelming," adding that he believed most people in the West believed that.

"Don't give up with the end in sight," he said. "Finish Hamas, finish Hezbollah, and finish the Iranian nuclear program."