President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser has bashed the president for getting drawn into nuclear brinkmanship with Russia.
Trump announced Friday that he had repositioned two nuclear submarines in the region after an incendiary remark from a Kremlin official.
“I think it’s a very risky business for a lot of reasons,” John Bolton told CNN. “It’s really just very ill-advised to have the president responding to somebody like that.”
Bolton further said Trump’s move betrayed his ignorance of how the fleet operates.
“A sufficient number of [missiles] are in position right now,” Bolton explained Friday. “To say he’s going to move those kinds of submarines anywhere indicates he doesn’t know how they work.”
“I hope somebody from the Pentagon who understands the disposition of the nuclear force explains this to Trump at some stage,” Bolton added.
Bolton’s comments follow a series of exchanges between Trump and Russian Deputy Security Council Chairman Dmitry Medvedev.
On Thursday, Trump reiterated his ultimatum to President Vladimir Putin: agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine before August 8 or the White House will impose new sanctions of 100 percent.
Medvedev called Trump’s threat a “step towards war,” urging him to “revisit his favorite movies about the living dead.”
In response, Trump repositioned two nuclear submarines “in the appropriate regions ... just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that.”
“Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, and I hope this will not be one of those instances,” he said.
Bolton warned that Trump’s gesture could lead the Kremlin to think he is considering a strike against Russia.
“You could see people in the Kremlin, obviously always nervous about our strike capabilities, believe that Trump is trying to insinuate that he may be considering a first strike, which is even more dangerous,” Bolton said.
