Former U-S Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton spoke in Las Cruces Thursday. Bolton was a speaker at the Domenici Public Policy Conference at New Mexico State University.
Bolton says he is not hopeful about the situation in Syria. He says it’s unlikely Syria will give up all its chemical weapons…and the United States and Russia have their own work to do on that issue. He stated that neither the U.S. nor Russia has completed work to dispose of chemical weapons under the provisions of signed agreements.
Illustrating the complexity of international relations…and views on Middle East policy….Bolton also expressed a common refrain among those critical of United States efforts over the past few years.
On one hand…Bolton expressed the strong need for the U.S. to be a world leader and be deeply involved with other countries. But on the other hand…he said the United States should not expect that we can influence other countries to become democracies. In fact, he said the U.S. should help to support the military in Egypt, which recently conducted a coup of the elected government.