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US President Trump expressed uncertainty about Iranian opposition figure Reza Pahlavi's ability to gain support in Iran.
US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that Iranian opposition figure Reza Pahlavi “seems very nice,” but expressed doubt about whether Pahlavi could gain enough support in Iran to come to power, as reported by Reuters.
In an exclusive Reuters interview in the Oval Office, Trump said there is a possibility that Iran’s clerical government could fall.
Here's what Trump said about Reza Pahalvi
Trump has repeatedly threatened to back protesters in Iran, where a crackdown on anti-clerical unrest has reportedly killed thousands. However, on Wednesday, he hesitated to fully endorse Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s late shah who was overthrown in 1979, Reuters reported.
“He seems very nice, but I don't know how he'd play within his own country,” Trump said, as reported by Reuters.
“And we really aren't up to that point yet.”
“I don't know whether or not his country would accept his leadership, and certainly if they would, that would be fine with me.”
Trump's comments went further in questioning Pahlavi's ability to lead Iran after saying last week that he had no plans to meet with him.
Who is Pahalvi?
The U.S.-based Reza Pahlavi, 65, has lived abroad since before his father was overthrown in the 1979 Islamic Revolution and has emerged as a prominent voice in the protests. Iran’s opposition remains divided among competing groups and ideological factions—including monarchists who support Pahlavi—and seems to have little organised presence inside the country.
Trump said it is possible the government in Tehran could fall due to the protests but that in truth “any regime can fail.”
“Whether or not it falls or not, it's going to be an interesting period of time,” he said, as reported by Reuters.
Iran protests
The United States is pulling some personnel back from bases in the Middle East, Reuters reported, citing a US official on Wednesday.
This comes after a warning from a senior Iranian official that Tehran would target American bases if Washington launched strikes, the report stated.
As Iran’s leadership struggles to contain the country’s most severe domestic unrest in its history, Tehran is attempting to deter Trump’s repeated threats to intervene in support of anti-government protesters.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to intervene in support of protesters in Iran, where thousands have reportedly been killed amid a crackdown on anti-clerical unrest.
The demonstrations, which began two weeks ago over worsening economic conditions and have escalated rapidly, are being described by both Iran and Western observers as the most violent unrest since the 1979 Islamic Revolution that established the country’s Shi’ite clerical system.
An Iranian official reported over 2,000 deaths, while a rights group put the toll above 2,600.
“Iran has never faced this volume of destruction,” Armed Forces Chief of Staff Abdolrahim Mousavi said Wednesday, blaming foreign adversaries, Reuters reported.
(With inputs from Reuters)
English (US) ·