(NewsNation) — After recent attacks in the Red Sea causing some commercial ships to reroute, former ambassador John Bolton criticized the Biden administration for not putting effort into deterring Iran leaving American personnel at risk.
Bolton stated that Iran is effectively manipulating events across the Middle East. “It’s not just that the administration is failing in deterrence. I don’t even think they’re trying really hard,” Bolton said in an “On Balance” interview.
Iran’s attacks on commercial ships and the US Navy have rerouted 10% of global commercial traffic around the Horn of Africa, leading to increased shipping costs and higher prices for consumers.
Maersk and several other shipping and oil companies are re-routing their cargo ships around Africa and the Cape of Good Hope to avoid conflict in the Red Sea. That means more man hours and fuel burned, which could also mean higher prices for the goods like gasoline.
Houthi rebels are vowing to continue attacking ships traveling to and from Israel as a show of support for Palestine. Additionally, Iran deployed a naval destroyer to the area this week; its mission remains unclear.
According to U.S. Central Command, a group of military helicopters sank three of the attack boats and killed 10 militants. The military added that the rebels fired on the helicopters, but no soldiers suffered injuries.
So far, the U.S. Central Command has reported 24 attacks on cargo ships in the Red Sea since mid-November.
The United States and 12 allies issued what amounted to a final warning to Houthi rebels on Wednesday to cease their attacks on vessels in the Red Sea or face potential targeted military action. The Yemen-based militants have carried out at least 23 attacks in response to the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza since Dec. 19.
The White House press corps turned up the heat on White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby, questioning the effectiveness of the Biden administration’s policy to deter Iran.
In response to the journalists’ inquiries, Kirby reiterated President Joe Biden’s stance that the United States does not seek conflict in the Middle East but will defend its interests and the free flow of international commerce.
Bolton highlighted the danger of inaction, warning that the United States could find itself at the mercy of Iran’s strategic decisions in the region. He questioned whether the US would continue to allow Iran to dictate the terms of the situation.
Bolton has consistently advocated for a more aggressive stance toward the Iranian government. He has openly supported the idea of regime change in Iran and has been a vocal critic of the Iran Nuclear Deal.
In June 2023, the U.S. imposed sanctions on an Iranian Revolutionary Guard official and others it says took part in wide-ranging plots to kill Bolton.
The alleged 2021 plot against Bolton, one of the best-documented of the alleged assassination efforts, is part of what U.S. prosecutors and former government officials describe as ongoing efforts by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard to kill Trump-era officials behind a 2020 U.S. airstrike that killed the head of the Iranian guard’s elite Quds Force, Qassem Soleimani.
NewsNation’s Tom Dempsey contributed to this report.