Trump warns Iran's new supreme leader will need US approval or won't 'last long'
WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump said on Sunday, March 8, that Iran’s next supreme leader would need approval from the United States to remain in power, as Tehran moves closer to selecting a successor amid the ongoing conflict with Washington.
Speaking to ABC News, Trump warned that any new Iranian leader would struggle to survive without US backing.
“He’s going to have to get approval from us,” Trump said. “If he doesn’t get approval from us, he’s not going to last long,” he added.
Trump says he wants to place a ‘good leader’
The president added that the United States wants to prevent future conflicts over Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
“We want to make sure that we don’t have to go back every 10 years, when you don’t have a president like me that’s not going to do it,” Trump said.
“I don’t want people to have to go back in five years and have to do the same thing again, or worse, let them have a nuclear weapon,” he continued.
Trump said he would be open to approving a leader linked to Iran’s previous regime if that person was considered capable. “I would, in order to choose a good leader, I would, yeah, I would,” he said. “There are numerous people that could qualify.”
The remarks came as speculation grew over who might succeed Iran’s current leadership following weeks of escalating military confrontation.
Trump claims he ended Iran’s regional ambitions
Trump also suggested that the war had stopped Tehran from carrying out a broader plan to dominate the Middle East.
“They are a paper tiger. They weren’t a paper tiger a week ago, I’ll tell you,” he said. “And they were going to attack.”
“Their plan was to attack the entire Middle East, to take over the entire Middle East,” he added.
The president also did not rule out deploying US special forces to secure Iran’s enriched uranium stockpiles. “Everything is on the table. Everything,” Trump said.
Trump on meeting families of fallen soldiers
Over the weekend, Trump met with the families of six US soldiers killed in the conflict. Asked whether witnessing the dignified transfer ceremonies had given him pause about the war, Trump said it had not. “No, not at all,” he said. “The parents would be upset if I did that.”
“The parents said to me, every one of them, 'please sir, win this for my boy', and in one case, a young woman,” he said. “'Please, win this for my child.'”
Trump described the meeting as emotional. “It was a beautiful event, where I met the parents. They were devastated but proud,” he said.
The president declined to predict how long the conflict would last, despite earlier saying it could run four to five weeks. “I don’t know. I never predict,” Trump said. “All I can say is we are ahead of schedule both in terms of lethality and in terms of time.”
Trump also brushed aside concerns over rising gasoline prices, calling them a temporary effect of the war. “I think it’s fine. It’s a little glitch. We had to take this detour,” he said.
Despite some criticism from longtime supporters, Trump insisted the operation had strong backing among his political base.
“It’s more popular than ever. It’s a very MAGA thing what we’re doing,” he said. “Because otherwise we won’t have a country either, we’ll be hit. And MAGA is all about saving America,” he added.
