Washington, D.C. — March 8, 2026 — President Donald Trump declared Sunday that Iran’s next Supreme Leader will need explicit U.S. approval to stay in power, warning that any successor chosen without Washington’s blessing “is not going to last long.”
Speaking to ABC News aboard Air Force One while traveling from Dover Air Force Base in Delaware to Miami, Trump tied the remark directly to Iran’s impending leadership transition following the death of longtime Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei amid ongoing U.S.-Israeli military strikes against Iranian targets.
“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. 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 added that he wants to avoid a repeat of past cycles that could allow Iran to pursue nuclear weapons. “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 told the network.
The comments come as Iran’s Assembly of Experts prepares to select a replacement for Khamenei. Trump signaled he would be willing to work with candidates who have ties to the previous regime if they meet U.S. expectations for stability and non-aggression. “I would, in order to choose a good leader I would, yeah, I would. There are numerous people that could qualify,” he said.
The statement reflects the Trump administration’s broader stance amid escalating conflict. U.S. and Israeli forces have conducted extensive strikes on Iranian military infrastructure, including oil facilities in Tehran, nuclear sites such as Natanz, Isfahan and Fordow, and key defensive systems. Trump has claimed these operations have destroyed Iran’s navy, air force, communications, and anti-aircraft capabilities, leaving the country “defenseless.”
Iranian officials swiftly rejected any notion of American involvement in their leadership selection.
Iran’s Foreign Minister stated Sunday that “the Iranian people, not Donald Trump, will elect their new leader,” while Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf dismissed Trump’s remarks on social media, insisting Iran’s future “will be determined solely by the proud Iranian nation.”
The power struggle in Tehran unfolds against a backdrop of heightened regional tensions. Trump has repeatedly framed the campaign as necessary to prevent Iran from dominating the Middle East and to give the Iranian people a chance at new leadership free from what he calls a “paper tiger” regime.
The president’s remarks drew no immediate comment from the White House beyond the ABC interview, but they align with his earlier insistence that the United States must play a direct role in shaping Iran’s post-Khamenei future.
As Iran moves closer to announcing its choice, Trump’s warning underscores Washington’s determination to influence the outcome — even as Tehran insists the decision remains an internal matter.
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