- US war timeline in Iraq unclear as Trump has not defined objectives clearly, John Bolton said
- Israel's goal in Iran conflict is regime change, he said
- Trump expects a minimum of four to five weeks but war could last months, Bolton said
A timeline cannot be put on the war in Iraq, since US President Donald Trump is yet to state his objectives clearly, former National Security Advisor of US John Bolton told NDTV today. He said while Israel's objective in the war on Iran -- a regime change -- is clear, that is not the case with Trump and the war could even drag on for months.
"Trump has said in the past 24 hours, he thinks it might be four or five weeks, but he is prepared to go longer," Bolton told NDTV's Padmaja Joshi in an exclusive interview.
"And he is also prepared, if need be, to put boots on the ground... So Trump has a political problem in the United States, to be sure, in explaining and justifying why he is doing this. But in terms of the operation itself, I think four to five weeks is a minimum. I think this could take months," he said.
Asked about the US objectives, Bolton said his guess is that President Trump is out to effect a regime change.
"I think what Trump wants to do is eliminate Iran's nuclear weapons program and destroy its ballistic missile programme, and hopefully eliminate its support for terrorism," Bolton said.
"I think the only way you can achieve those objectives, which I think are legitimate, is to eliminate the regime," he said. But while Trump may stop short of that -- given he has cited the concept of Venezuela --it would not be easy to achieve in Iran.
"The state, the rule of the Ayatollahs, is much, much deeper than simply the supreme leader," he added.
Asked who would replace the Revolutionary Guard, Bolton said that is not clear yet.
"One opposition is very widespread in Iran, but frankly, it is not very well organized. So I think the most likely outcome of a successful regime change in the near term would be a military government by the conventional armed forces, not the Revolutionary Guard, but the regular military," he said.
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"It is going to be tumultuous and it could be bloody. The Ayatollahs have ruled with an iron fist for 47 years. They are not going to give up easily," he added.
