The increasingly ubiquitous Steve Witkoff — President Trump’s special envoy to Russia and Iran — is fast approaching Mr. Bean-like territory. Like the fictional character, Witkoff’s clumsy attempts to play diplomat are only complicating our national security challenges, making them far more difficult to solve.
It would be comical if the global stakes were not so high. While Rowan Atkinson is a slam dunk to play Witkoff if the movie ever gets made — think “The Trouble with Mr. Witkoff” — the future security of Eastern Europe is at risk, and the dangerous prospect of a nuclear Iran looms larger than ever as Tehran nears a nuclear breakout.
Witkoff’s fawning over Russian President Vladimir Putin last Friday was bad enough. Embracing dictators by first placing your hand over your heart while sacrificing the interests of Ukrainians fighting on behalf of Western liberty is never a good look.
Stepping into Iran’s desired talking points, however, was beyond the pale. Although Witkoff has since walked back his comments, during an interview on Monday with Sean Hannity on Fox News, Trump’s envoy implied that the U.S. was only seeking verification of Iran’s uranium enrichment and what “type[s]] of missiles they have stockpiled there.”
Essentially, what Witkoff was trying to sell Iran was a rehash of the Obama-era nuclear deal. Never mind that Trump has long condemned the Obama era nuclear deal — and that Trump formally withdrew from that deal in May 2018.
Iran, given all of its recent regional setbacks at the hands of the Israelis — the decimation of Hamas, the neutering of Hezbollah, and attacks on the Houthis in Yemen — would gladly take a 2.0 deal, as it would preserve their nuclear program and buy Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei the time he needs to reset.
Therein lies the rub with Witkoff. Consistently, as a negotiator, he is overidentifying with our nation’s enemies. First with Putin and now, alarmingly, with an Iranian regime hell-bent on obtaining nuclear weapons.
It makes you wonder if the Iran problem set is linked to the Ukraine peace deal — they both have the same lead negotiator, after all.
Like his fictional Bean-like alter ego, Witkoff seemingly is wholly unaware of how geopolitics works and the superpower posturing that comes with it. In his zeal to reach any deal, Witkoff, far too often, is willing to make major short-term concessions at the expense of strategic long-term considerations, seemingly without the consent of Ukraine or Israel.
We witnessed this in real time last week, after Witkoff met with Putin in St. Petersburg. Reportedly, according to Reuters, Witkoff told Trump that the most expeditious way to reach a ceasefire in Ukraine would be to award Putin the four Ukrainian oblasts he illegally annexed in 2022.
Never mind that Russia does not fully control any of the four — Kherson, Donetsk, Luhansk, or Zaporizhzhia — and that they are, under international law, illegally occupying and subjugating Ukrainian citizens. Never mind too that Putin is interpreting Witkoff’s negotiating approach as a green light to expand the war.
Witkoff now appears to be bringing that same self-defeating approach to his negotiations with Iran and its ruling regime. What happened to Trump’s much-hyped February restoration of his vaunted ‘maximum pressure’ policy approach to Khamenei?
In January, we warned that Trump must end the permissive environment that former President Joe Biden left behind. Instead, Witkoff has — wittingly or not — in Bean-like fashion doubled down on creating an ever-greater expansive permissive environment for Russia, Iran and, by extension, all of their Axis of Evil allies.
Slouching toward Armageddon is not going to get the job done. Witkoff needs to go and to go fast. Surely, Secretary of State Marco Rubio can see this. Why even have a State Department, or allies for that matter, if Witkoff is allowed to act as a loose cannon?
No wonder Abbas Araghchi, Iran’s foreign minister, was largely encouraged after his first brief exchange with Witkoff in Oman. Trump’s envoy was foolishly pushing a restoration of the old Obama nuclear deal — and he was signaling that Iran has time.
Absent any sense of urgency, Araghchi seized on this, telling Iranian TV that the “[American] goal is to reach an agreement in the shortest possible time. However, that will certainly not be an easy task.”
That sounds a lot like Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who on Sunday said that ongoing U.S.-Russian negotiations are unlikely to result in “lightning-fast results,” but that “everything is moving very well.”
Speed kills, and it is killing Witkoff’s negotiating position. Iran is only likely to respect the threat of force. Even that is questionable, given Khamenei’s seeming obstinance and unwillingness to back down after Israel began to systematically destroy his so-called “Axis of Resistance” in the wake of the Oct. 7. Attacks.
But is it obstinance? Or is it that Khamenei knows Iran is close to nuclear breakout and the capabilities needed to trigger and deliver nukes?
Either way, Iran’s nuclear threat is very real, and it is immediate. Contrary to Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s recent testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee, Iran is attempting to build nuclear weapons and the delivery systems capable of launching them.
As we noted then, if it walks like a nuclear duck, quacks like a nuclear duck, then it is a nuclear Iranian duck.
Trump must quickly reassert control over Witkoff and his overall Iran policy. Team Trump is making a number of right strategic and tactical messaging moves including “the deployment of at least six nuclear-capable B-2 Spirit bombers to Camp Thunder Bay on the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.”
The President has stated himself that he believes Khamenei is playing him for time. Iran will likely continue doing so until Witkoff is relieved. That is likely why Iran is hosting Rafel Grassi in Tehran, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency believing they can leverage him into arguing for a new version of the Obama nuclear deal.
Witkoff needs to be replaced by a former top U.S. general — retired Gen. Jack Keane comes to mind — who can reestablish a sense of real urgency and deliver on Trump’s “maximum pressure” policy approach to Iran.
Enough of Team Trump slouching toward Armageddon. Enough of a Mr. Bean-like Witkoff playing into Khamenei’s nuclear ambitions. Iran is capable of enriching enough uranium to build one nuke a month.
It is time for Trump to let Iran know, in no uncertain terms, that he is serious when he says Tehran must dismantle its entire nuclear program or have it kinetically dismantled by the U.S. and Israelis working together.
Mark Toth writes on national security and foreign policy. Col. (Ret.) Jonathan E. Sweet served 30 years as an Army intelligence officer.