Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran's former Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, positioned himself as a potential future leader during a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Grapevine, Texas. He urged US President Donald Trump to avoid striking a deal with Iran and instead pursue regime change, receiving a raucous welcome from the audience.

"Can you imagine Iran going from 'Death to America' to 'God Bless America'?" Pahlavi asked the crowd. He added, "President Trump is making America great again. I intend to make Iran great again," which was met with a standing ovation and chants of "Long live the king!" from some attendees. His remarks came on the one-month anniversary of the US and Israeli decision to launch a war against Iran, a conflict that has resulted in at least 1,937 deaths and tens of thousands of injuries in Iran, with no end in sight.

Pahlavi has emerged as a central opposition figure in the Iranian diaspora, with supporters often displaying his image and Iran's pre-revolutionary flag at global protests. While some in the diaspora have expressed reservations about the US-Israeli attacks and their impact on Iran's future, Pahlavi has aligned himself with Trump and the administration's most hawkish elements, stating, "This regime in its entirety must go."

Analysts have warned that the Iranian government is unlikely to collapse and could emerge from the conflict more hardened than before. Some exiles have faced criticism for supporting the US-Israeli war despite the heavy toll on Iranian civilians. Trump himself has previously downplayed Pahlavi's potential role, noting that the son of the former shah, who was expelled during Iran's 1979 revolution, lacks popularity in Iran and suggesting that "somebody from within, maybe, would be more appropriate."

Divisions within the US right over the war in Iran were evident at CPAC. Polls indicate that while the war is widely unpopular among US voters overall, Republicans support it by large margins. For instance, a Pew Research Center poll found that 71% of Republican voters believe the US made the right decision to attack Iran, whereas 59% of all voters opposed the initial strikes. Influential voices on the right, such as Tucker Carlson and Steve Bannon, have become vocal critics of the war, and younger activists express frustration, viewing it as a betrayal of Trump's promise to avoid overseas military adventures.

Source: www.aljazeera.com