'Khamenei’s son is unacceptable to me': Trump calls for role in Iran's leader selection

US President Donald Trump said on Thursday (March 5) that he believes the United States should have a role in selecting Iran’s next supreme leader following the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, while dismissing the possibility of Khamenei’s son taking over the position. Speaking in an interview with Axios, Trump criticised Mojtaba Khamenei, who is widely considered one of the potential successors to his father, and suggested Washington should be involved in the leadership transition.

"Khamenei's son is a lightweight. I have to be involved in the appointment, like with Delcy," Trump told Axios in an interview, drawing a comparison to Venezuela, where interim president Delcy Rodriguez has cooperated with him under threat of violence after the United States ousted her boss, Nicolas Maduro. Trump also warned that the United States could be pulled back into conflict in the coming years if Iran ends up with leadership that is hostile toward Washington.

"Khamenei's son is unacceptable to me. We want someone who will bring harmony and peace to Iran," Trump was quoted as saying by the news outlet.

It remains unclear how the United States could influence the selection process. Under Iran’s political system, the country’s supreme leader is chosen by the Assembly of Experts, a body of senior Shiite Muslim clerics who are largely opposed to US involvement in Iranian affairs. However, Trump’s remarks suggest he may prefer dealing with a figure within Iran’s existing political system rather than pursuing the complete removal of the Islamic Republic’s government.

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Iran has remained a staunch adversary of the United States since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, which overthrew the pro-Western monarchy and brought the current Islamic Republic to power. Meanwhile, Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s last shah, has proposed serving as a temporary transitional leader while the country drafts a new constitution aimed at establishing a secular democratic system. Earlier on Thursday, Pahlavi said any new supreme leader chosen under the Islamic Republic’s framework would lack legitimacy.

Ali Khamenei, who had led Iran since 1989 and was known for his hardline stance both domestically and internationally, was killed last Saturday in an Israeli strike during an escalating conflict involving Israel and the United States. His son, Mojtaba Khamenei, has emerged as one of the possible candidates to succeed him. Ali Khamenei himself became Iran’s second supreme leader after revolutionary leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.

Trump also pointed to Venezuela as an example of his approach to foreign leadership disputes. Earlier this year, US forces carried out a deadly operation that captured longtime American adversary Nicolas Maduro. Instead of backing the opposition long supported by Washington, Trump has expressed satisfaction with Delcy Rodríguez, Maduro’s former vice president, who has since cooperated with the United States on several key demands, particularly those related to access for US oil companies. According to Trump, that cooperation has come under the implicit threat of further military action if Washington’s conditions, especially those concerning natural resources, are not met.

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