Ex-Trump National Security Adviser Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster on Biden challenges

President Donald Trump's former national security viser, Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster h plenty of vice for incoming Biden ministration on foreign policy issues.

During an online interview about his book, "Battlegrounds: Fight to Defend Free World," McMaster was blunt about difficulties of crafting a successful foreign policy in Middle East.

"Do not view Middle East mainly as a mess to be avoided, because just when you think it can't get worse in Middle East, it actually can," he said.

"This is not a call for vast numbers of troops in region, or for U.S. taking on burden of all region's problems," McMaster said.

"But also recognizing that our disengagement creates hedging behavior that makes situation worse."

McMaster me remarks during an event hosted by Atlantic Council, non-partisan organization that focuses on U.S. and challenges in foreign affairs.

McMaster pointed to Russia's intervention in Syrian civil war following President Barack Obama's "unenforced red line," when Obama threatened military action against Syrian regime if it used chemical weapons, but n failed to back up threat.

" problems in Middle East don't stay in Middle East," McMaster said.

Although McMcaster has largely held off on criticizing Trump ministration on foreign policy, he has recently been highly critical of Trump's recent drawdown of U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

"Why do we care in Dayton, Ohio, or Peoria, Illinois or wherever about Afghanistan? And I think we can make that case," he said.

"We can say, hey, we are prioritizing our security here. We're going to prevent jihist terrorists from ever again gaining a safe haven support base that y can use to commit attacks on scale of 9/11," he said.

But he also argued new ministration needs to articulate a strategy "that will deliver that desired outcome at a cost that is acceptable."

McMaster also urged President-elect Biden to be skeptical of any effort by Chinese Communist Party to shift back to a general approach of cooperation and engagement.

'I think false promises will largely be in two areas," he said.

" first of se will be in area of of environment and climate change and that set of interconnected global challenges that we face," he said.

"And second will probably be in connection with North Korea's nuclear program."

Image Credits: AP