McMaster: I Know Trump's Decision on 'Flawed' Iran Nuclear Deal

The Iran nuclear deal is "fundamentally flawed," as it gives the Iranian regime all the benefits up front and is incomplete to the point that it could allow cover to advance a nuclear program, National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster warned Thursday.

He also told CNN's "New Day" anchor Chris Cuomo that he knows what President Donald Trump has decided to do about the Obama-era nuclear deal, but deferred to the president to make his own announcement.

"When the President reveals that, when he talks about it, he'll place context of the broader approach to Iran," said McMaster.

McMaster said the administration has taken a "holistic" look at the Iran deal.

"What's different about the president's approach is he didn't just look at the Iran deal," he told Cuomo. "He placed his decision on the Iran deal on broad context of how we protect American citizens, American interests, how we protect our allies and partners from Iran's broad range of destabilizing behavior."

President Donald Trump Wednesday said he's come to a decision about certifying the Obama-era agreement, but would not say what his decision is. On Tuesday however, during his first U.N. General Assembly speech, Trump slammed Iran's governing regime, saying the country's government "masks a corrupt dictatorship behind the false guise of a democracy" and ruthlessly represses its own people.

He further described the nuclear deal as "one of the worst and most one-sided transactions the United States has ever entered into. Frankly, that deal is an embarrassment to the United States."

Appearing on NBC's Today Show, McMaster said Iran had "walked up to the line and crossed the line," leading to the deal.

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"They had too much heavy water," said McMaster. "When they're confronted, they backed off of that. But of course, the inspection regime is not that robust. One of the first things that has to happen is it has to be rigorously enforced. The worst thing that could happen is if this deal provides cover for Iran to get a nuclear capability."

Iran's missile program also is "continuing unabated by the deal," McMaster said. "What Iran needs to be is incentivized to stop its destructive behavior across the region. That has caused so much human suffering. So the idea is, our approach to Iran has to change fundamentally."

McMaster Thursday also commented on the CNN report about Trump's warning that the United States would be forced to "totally destroy" North Korea if attacked, calling the threat "completely appropriate."

He further said Trump would make an announcement "short of war" on Thursday about what his action would be concerning the North Korean threat.

"What is even more dangerous is if there's a lack of clarity," McMaster told Cuomo. "Previous presidents have made very similar statements and the clause is 'if,' 'if North Korea attacks,' 'if North Korea takes these provocative actions.' We may not have a choice."

He also defended Trump's use of the nickname "Rocket Man" for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, calling it "accurate."

"This is someone who has compromised everything for his nation in the pursuit of these capabilities," he said. "He is disadvantaging his own people every day by investing in what is a suicide mission.