White House National Security Adviser John Bolton told reporters Thursday that US President Donald Trump has approved a new US counterterrorism strategy much broader than any previously established, Sputnik reported.
"President Trump has approved a new strategy which is the nation's first robust, fully articulated counterterrorism strategy since 2011," Bolton said, before indicating that the new strategy would include isolating terrorist from their supporters, protecting US infrastructure and countering terrorist recruitment and radicalization.
"Working with foreign governments, we will encourage burden sharing with capable partners so they can play a larger role in counterterrorism efforts," the official added.
A White House release indicates that the new six-pronged approach will focus on: Pursuing terrorists to their source; Isolating terrorists from their sources of support; Modernizing and integrating the United States counterterrorism tools; Protecting American infrastructure and enhancing resilience; Countering terrorist radicalization and recruitment; and Strengthening the counterterrorism abilities of our international partners.
The adviser later took a turn and began talking about Iran and China with reporters. In regards to Tehran, he accused Iran of being the "world's central banker for international terrorism since 1979." He added that "radical Islamist terrorist groups represent the pre-eminent transnational terrorist threat to the United States and to the United States' interests abroad."
Bolton was also quoted by reporters as saying that climate change is not the cause of international terrorism and how the stance being taken by the Trump administration is much different from previous US administrations. "This is not the Obama administration," he said.