Former US security chief warns Iran ‘getting everything it wanted’ in talks

President Trump’s former national security advisor blasts administration’s handling of negotiations with Iran, lamenting the American approach is strengthening the Islamic Republic.

By World Israel News Staff

Former US national security adviser H.R. McMaster said Wednesday that Iran is gaining the upper hand in indirect negotiations with the Trump administration, arguing that sanctions relief and loosened oil restrictions are giving Tehran the money it needs to recover from recent military setbacks.

Speaking on CBS News as President Donald Trump touted progress in the talks, McMaster said Iran was using diplomacy to buy time and rebuild.

“Iran is the one making the progress in these negotiations because they’re receiving big paychecks,” McMaster said.

He said Tehran had entered the talks with a “shopping list” and was now “getting everything that they wanted.”

“They’re getting the infusion of cash they desperately needed to get themselves up off the mat,” McMaster added.

McMaster, who served as Trump’s national security adviser during the president’s first term, said sanctions relief and eased restrictions on Iranian oil sales could help the regime restore military capacity and support allied armed groups across the Middle East.

His remarks came after the United States and Iran held another round of indirect technical talks in Doha, mediated by Qatari and Pakistani officials. Reuters reported that the discussions focused on maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and the unfreezing of Iranian funds, rather than the broader nuclear issue.

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry described the latest talks as showing “positive progress,” while oil prices fell as investors reacted to signs of continued diplomacy.

The negotiations follow a 60-day memorandum of understanding reached in June after a period of direct military confrontation between the United States, Israel and Iran. The framework paused some hostilities and opened the door to further talks on maritime security, frozen assets, oil sales and Iran’s nuclear program.

As part of that process, the US Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control issued Iran General License X on June 22, authorizing “the production, delivery and sale of crude oil, petrochemical products, and petroleum products of Iranian-origin through August 21, 2026.”

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said at the time that the license was part of the diplomatic framework.

“Iran has committed to free and open transit in the Strait of Hormuz and to permit International Atomic Energy Agency inspectors into their country,” Bessent said. “As part of the framework, Treasury has issued a temporary 60-day general licence authorising the production, delivery and sale of Iranian oil.”

Supporters of the administration’s approach argue that temporary sanctions relief is a tool to prevent renewed war and test whether Iran will accept limits on its nuclear and regional activity. Vice President JD Vance said after earlier talks that the negotiations had created “a very good foundation for a successful final deal.”

McMaster rejected that view, warning that Tehran has a long history of using talks to delay pressure while preserving its strategic options.

He said the current process amounted to “a case of self-defeat” for Washington if it allows Iran to restore revenue without first forcing major concessions on its nuclear program, missile capabilities and support for proxy groups.

Other former Trump officials have also voiced skepticism. Retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, another former adviser to Trump, told the New York Post this week that the president should prepare Americans for the possibility of a second phase of conflict with Iran if diplomacy fails.

The Trump administration says the talks remain aimed at securing a broader settlement that would keep the Strait of Hormuz open, prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon and reduce the risk of a wider regional war.

Iran has said it is seeking an end to sanctions and recognition of its rights, including the right to sell oil and maintain influence over shipping near its coast. Tehran has also demanded the release of frozen assets and broader guarantees against renewed military action.

For McMaster, the immediate effect of the talks is already clear.

“They’re getting everything that they wanted,” he said.