U.S. President Donald Trump, asked about Iran's next leader after the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, said there were "three options."
In a phone interview with the New York Times (NYT) on the 1st, Trump, asked who would lead Iran going forward, said, "There are three very good options," adding, "I won't say who they are now. Let's do what needs to be done first."
He did not answer a question asking, "Do you think Ali Larijani, secretary-general of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, could lead the Iranian government?" Secretary-General Larijani has said a transitional council would run the Iranian government until Khamenei's successor is decided.
The NYT reported that after the death of Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei, President Trump showed an ambiguous stance on who should become the leader in Iran and who should make that decision.
Asked how long the United States and Israel could sustain attacks against Iran at the current level, Trump said, "I was thinking four to five weeks," adding that it "would not be difficult" to continue such attacks.
As the NYT reporter kept asking about a plan to achieve a transfer of power in Iran, he said he hoped Iran's elite soldiers would hand over their weapons to the Iranian people, adding, "They will surrender to the people."
Referring to a scenario in which the Iranian people overthrow the current government, Trump said, "They have been talking for many years, and now they have an opportunity."
He also mentioned the Venezuela case. Trump said, "I think what we did in Venezuela was a perfect scenario," adding, "(In Venezuela) everyone kept their place except for two people."
The NYT said he appeared captivated by the Venezuela-style model. Venezuela launched a transitional government centered on the vice president, who had been the regime's No. 2, after President Nicolás Maduro was arrested in the United States.