US paper: Bolton’s departure removes a counterweight to Trump’s foreign policy

President Trump has rewritten the U.S. foreign policy playbook with his willingness to meet anyone and go anywhere to get a deal, The Wall Street Journal said.

With his hawkish national security adviser John Bolton gone, Mr. Trump has removed one of the last dissenting voices on his impulses and instincts.

Mr. Bolton joined the administration in April 2018, a point at which some of the administration’s more moderate figures were already gone. With Mr. Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, a fellow hawk, Mr. Trump’s foreign policy was expected to take a dramatic turn, the paper added.

But Mr. Trump has opted for dialogue over conflict. For instance, he shelved plans, supported by Mr. Bolton, for a retaliatory strike after Iran shot down a U.S. drone in June. Asked about his differences with his then-national security adviser on Iran, Mr. Trump told reporters: “I temper John—which is pretty amazing.”

Iran’s government spokesman, Ali Rabiei, applauded Mr. Bolton’s departure in a post on Twitter. “Months ago, #JohnBolton had promised that #Iran would not be there in 3 months; we are still standing & he is gone. With the ousting of its biggest proponent of war & economic terrorism, the White House will have fewer obstacles to understanding the realities of Iran.”

Mr. Pompeo said Tuesday that Mr. Trump would meet with the Iranian president. “The president has made very clear he is prepared to meet with no preconditions,” he said.

Mr. Trump has engaged in trade battles around the world, but opted to maintain a measured response on protests in Hong Kong so not to disrupt his trade talks with China, even as Republican lawmakers offered public support for the demonstrators.

Mr. Bolton’s outspoken advocacy for tougher action against Venezuela and Cuba was a source of great tension within the administration. Mr. Trump has become increasingly frustrated that his gamble on regime change in Caracas through economic pressure isn’t paying off, according to the paper.

Mr. Trump has drawn criticism for rushing into international negotiations without careful preparation. While Mr. Bolton’s departure opens the door to talks with Iran, it could worry key U.S. allies in the Middle East, including Gulf nations and Israel, who believed that the Obama-era of greater accommodation with Iran was over, said Danielle Pletka, of the American Enterprise Institute.