John Bolton has a habit of describing the world in stark, apocalyptic terms, and his latest assessment of the Iran conflict is no exception. The former national security adviser said Sunday that Iran's strategy of encircling its adversaries with allied militant groups has taken a serious beating, while insisting the U.S. could still pull off something much bigger: regime change in Tehran.

Iran's Military Strategy Weakens

Writing on X on Sunday, Bolton put it bluntly: "Iran's ring of fire strategy now lies in ruins, like much of its military-industrial complex."

He didn't spare Washington either. Bolton criticized the U.S. approach, saying American actions had failed to deliver a satisfactory result.

"Although Washington's own confusing, inconsistent actions have produced far less than a satisfactory outcome, success is still possible, including the potential for regime change in Iran," Bolton said.

Trump, Zandi Highlight Iran War's Energy Costs

President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has floated the idea that the U.S. could stay in Iran to "keep the oil," while expressing optimism that the conflict could wrap up this year and that gasoline prices could "drop like a rock."

The pump numbers tell a more painful story right now. Moody's Analytics Chief Economist Mark Zandi said Thursday that the war had added about $115 billion in energy costs for U.S. households, or roughly $860 per household.

Zandi noted that higher gasoline, diesel and jet fuel prices have hit lower- and middle-income Americans disproportionately hard.

According to data from the American Automobile Association (AAA), the national average price of regular gasoline was $4.3130 per gallon on Sunday, with California recording the highest state average at $5.9877 per gallon.

Trump-Iran Tensions Escalated

The diplomatic track hasn't exactly been sprinting. Last month, Trump said he was "not in a hurry" for Iran to return to peace negotiations and had "no time schedule" for talks, while claiming the U.S. was "winning very big." He also defended economic pressure and military strikes against Tehran.

As tensions continued, Iran was reportedly considering attacks on U.S. military targets in southeastern Europe, including Bulgaria's Bezmer air base and potential targets in Cyprus.

Iranian commanders warned of a broader response that could extend to European targets and subsea fiber-optic cables in the Strait of Hormuz.

NATO said it was prepared to "address any threat" and defend its allies.