Paul Pilar warns against repeating the US scenario of the occupation of Iraq with Iran, referring to a statement by US President Donald Trump criticizing the nuclear deal and believed to give Tehran the legal right to possess nuclear weapons.

Trump's statement came during an open meeting of the president with his cabinet on the first working day of the new year.

Trump has the ability to garner the support of a large segment of American public opinion who often believe his lies, and warns of the spread of his latest lie about whether the agreement would enable Tehran to acquire nuclear weapons on a large scale.

The writer warns of the spread of Trump's lie in this context, saying that it would influence the American public opinion on US policy towards Iran, although these allegations were not mentioned in any official statement to the US administration.

Trump's lie could influence US public opinion on US policy toward Iran (Reuters)

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The dynamism of public opinion on this subject is somewhat similar to the dynamism of the Americans' reactions during the 2003 war and invasion of Iraq.

He explained that the campaign against Iraq began to promote many abuses in relation to Iraq and al-Qaeda, where a large percentage of Americans believed that the Iraqi government was responsible for the attacks of September 11, 2001, although the administration of President George W. Bush did not specifically confirm this .

The writer warns of the danger of Trump's comments on the nuclear deal with Iran, and believes that the misunderstanding resulting from such lies may be the backdrop to the campaign launched by the current administration to launch an offensive war against Iran.

"We are almost certain that the Iranian leadership remains committed to a strategy of making usable nuclear weapons," said John Bolton, national security adviser.

He says the statement contradicts US intelligence estimates, but Bolton has never hesitated to ignore intelligence judgments that do not support his goals.

If the deal collapses, and if the Iranians face a US threat to launch a military attack and seek a strong deterrent against it, he says, they may turn back their previous interest in nuclear weapons.

The author says Bolton has asked the Pentagon to provide options for a military attack on Iran.