US President Donald Trump on Thursday said he wanted a role in picking Iran’s next leader, further muddying Washington’s war motives.
Iranian clerics are close to announcing the new supreme leader, following the killing of Ali Khamenei, whose son is in the running to lead the country. That would be “unacceptable,” Trump told Axios, adding he needs to be involved in selecting who’ll run Iran — just as he was in Venezuela. But analysts noted the vast differences between Tehran’s ideologically-driven regime and Caracas’ strongman-centered government.
Trump’s remarks also contradict US officials’ denials that Washington is pursuing regime change, but if it does, a former US diplomat argued, it will likely result in the same “costly chaos” that ensued in previous attempts.