Updated 15 January 2026 at 18:58 IST
Trump Questions Support for Son of Iran's Last Shah Inside Country
In a Reuters interview, Trump suggested Iran's clerical government might collapse and criticized Ukrainian President Zelenskiy for stalled negotiations with Russia. He hesitated to support Pahlavi, questioning his potential leadership in Iran. The opposition remains fragmented, with no clear support for any leader.
In an exclusive Reuters interview in the Oval Office, Trump said there was a chance Iran's clerical government could collapse, blamed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for the stalemate in negotiations with Russia over the war in Ukraine, and dismissed Republican criticism of a Justice Department probe of Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to intervene in support of protesters in Iran, where thousands of people have been reported killed in a crackdown on the unrest against clerical rule. But he was reluctant on Wednesday to lend his full support to Pahlavi, the son of the late shah of Iran, who was ousted from power in 1979.
"He seems very nice, but I don't know how he'd play within his own country," Trump said. "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 he said last week that he had no plans to meet with him.
Opposition fragmented
The U.S. based Pahlavi, 65, has lived outside Iran since before his father was toppled in the 1979 Islamic Revolution and has become a prominent voice in the protests.
Iran's opposition is fragmented among rival groups and ideological factions - including the monarchists who back Pahlavi - and appears to have little organized presence inside the Islamic Republic.
Echoing Trump's caution, Sanam Vakil, deputy director of Chatham House's Middle East and North Africa Program, said Pahlavi had gained prominence among some protesters and had helped mobilise them to some extent. "But I wouldn't overstate it. It's very hard to see how much support he has or how much support any figure has in Iran", she said.
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.
Trump, who is closing out the first year of his second term in office, sat behind his massive Resolute Desk and sipped a Diet Coke during the 30-minute interview. At one point, he held up a thick binder of papers he said contained his achievements since being sworn into office on January 20, 2025.
Published By : Melvin Narayan
Published On: 15 January 2026 at 18:58 IST