Trump says he must be involved in selecting new Iran leader

President Trump said on Thursday that he must be personally involved in the process of selecting a new leader in Iran. 

In an interview with Axios published on Thursday, Trump said that the son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Mojtaba Khamenei, is most likely to succeed his father, but that the pick would be “unacceptable” to him. 

“We want someone that will bring harmony and peace to Iran,” Trump told the outlet. 

“They are wasting their time. Khamenei’s son is a lightweight. I have to be involved in the appointment, like with Delcy [Rodriguez] in Venezuela,” the president said.

Rodriguez, Venezuela’s former vice president, became the country’s leader after Trump ordered U.S. strikes on that country that resulted in the ousting and capture of then-president Nicolas Maduro. There have since been signs of some cooperation between the U.S. and Venezuelan governments.

Trump’s demand that he decide the next leader of Iran, however, could complicate efforts to end the conflict in that country, which was long run by the U.S.-backed Shah before the Iranian revolution. The Shah’s rule was strengthened by a coup in 1953 backed by the U.S. and British governments in which the CIA was instrumental.

Trump told reporters on Wednesday Iranian leadership keeps dying when asked about potential future leaders.

“Their leadership is rapidly going. Everyone that wants to be a leader ends up dead,” he said. 

“Their missiles are being wiped out rapidly. Their launchers are being wiped out,” he added. 

It is unclear who is in charge of Iran following the U.S. strikes in the country on Saturday. 

Days after Khamenei’s death, a building housing 88 members of the country’s Council of Experts was bombed while they were counting votes for Khamenei’s replacement, according to Axios.

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