SouthernWorldwide.com – Former Director of the National Counterterrorism Center, Joe Kent, asserted that former President Donald Trump was “poised” to negotiate a more favorable deal with Iran than the Obama-era Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) before the recent conflict. Kent made this statement in a post on X on Thursday.
Kent stated that prior to the outbreak of war, President Trump was in a strong position to secure a better agreement with Iran than the one established under the Obama administration, often referred to as the “Obama Iran deal.”
“The Iranians feared and respected Trump in a way they never respected Obama,” Kent elaborated. He highlighted that Trump’s administration took decisive action by eliminating the “terror mastermind Qasem Soleimani,” yet managed to avoid deeper involvement in the Middle East.
Kent believes this approach prevented the U.S. from being drawn into a conflict that would have primarily benefited Iran and strengthened its hardline factions. He suggested that this demonstrated Trump’s strategic prudence in foreign policy.
He further argued that Iran’s proxies ceased their attacks on U.S. interests shortly after Trump’s potential return to office in January 2025. This, according to Kent, indicated Iran’s willingness to engage in negotiations with Trump.
Kent, who resigned from his counterterrorism role in March to protest the war with Iran, proposed that Trump could still influence the situation. He advised Trump to de-escalate the military standoff, restrain Israel’s actions, and utilize sanctions relief as leverage to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and negotiate a new nuclear deal.
The former director claimed that Iran’s decision to hold back its proxies and the protests against the regime in January demonstrated the effectiveness of Trump’s “max pressure” strategy and targeted strikes. He lamented that this progress was “squandered” by allowing Israeli decision-making to dictate U.S. actions.
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In response to Kent’s assertions, a spokesperson for Trump, Steven Cheung, stated that Kent’s resignation letter and recent comments were filled with falsehoods. Cheung specifically refuted Kent’s claims that Iran did not pose a threat to the U.S. and that Israel had forced the President into initiating “Operation Epic Fury.”
Cheung maintained that President Trump acted decisively based on substantial evidence indicating an imminent threat from the Iranian regime, which was allegedly preparing to attack Americans. He emphasized that President Trump’s paramount concern has always been the safety and security of the American people.
During a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing on Thursday, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) Commander Admiral Brad Cooper testified that Iran and its proxies had attacked U.S. service members and diplomats approximately 350 times in the 30 months preceding the launch of Operation Epic Fury. This averages out to an attack roughly every three days.
However, Kent countered this by asserting on X that Iran’s proxies attacked U.S. troops and diplomats under the Biden administration, not during the Trump administration prior to Operation Epic Fury, hence the 30-month timeframe. He reiterated that these attacks stopped when Trump returned to office in January 2025.
Kent further claimed that Iran’s restraint in proxy attacks and the protests against the regime in January indicated that Trump’s strategy was working. He tragically stated that this success was undermined by allowing Israel to influence U.S. decision-making.
The former counterterrorism chief suggested that a deal with Iran was in the works during Trump’s previous term. This deal, he argued, would have thwarted Israel’s objective of drawing the U.S. into a war with Iran. Consequently, Kent alleged, Israel took extensive measures to instigate such a conflict.
