U.S. Hard-line Stance on Iran Rattles Allies (Foreign Policy) [View all]

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As Trump’s national security team barrels toward a confrontation in the Persian Gulf, Europe is starting to balk.
BY LARA SELIGMAN, ROBBIE GRAMER | MAY 15, 2019, 9:06 AM
Foreign Policy

Allies of the United States are starting to balk at the Trump administration’s military response to what it calls credible threats from Iran to U.S. troops in the Middle East, as fears mount that the United States is headed into another ill-advised conflict in the region.

Jim Townsend, a former senior Pentagon official, said European allies, already skeptical of Trump’s foreign policy, see disturbing parallels to President George W. Bush’s invasion of Iraq, especially since Trump’s hawkish national security advisor, John Bolton, appears to be directing the administration’s approach to Iran. “Allies are getting nervous about just what Bolton might cause to happen by accident,” Townsend said. “They remember that following the Americans blindly can get you engaged in a forever war.”

“It’s not popular in Europe to go die for Donald Trump,” he said.

https://foreignpolicy.com/2019/05/15/u-s-hard-line-stance-on-iran-rattles-allies/