Trump claims, ‘I never cared about regime change’ in Iran, says its current leaders are ‘strong, smart’

Continuing his remarks about the US agreement with Iran at the G7 summit, US President Donald Trump claims he “never cared about regime change” as a goal in the US-Israeli campaign against Tehran, while reiterating his belief that the elimination of so many senior officials in the Islamic Republic effectively amounts to regime change.

“You talk about regime change. I never cared about regime change. It [was] never a part. But I guess you have regime change because you know better than anybody, the first group, they’re all dead. The second group, they’re dead. A part of the third group is gone,” he says, referring to echelons of the Iranian leadership.

“And we’re dealing with people that I think are very rational people. They were nice to deal with. They were strong people, smart people. I think actually they’re smarter than the first and second group, but they’re not radicalized and they’re, you know, looking to help their country,” he continues.

Trump says, “I don’t believe in regime change. And I’ve watched regime changes for years. They never work. It has to just happen [naturally],” he says.

On the first day of the war in late February, Trump indicated that the goal of the strikes in Iran was to topple the regime, and called on the Iranian people to seize the opportunity to take over their government, telling them “the hour of your freedom is at hand.”

“When we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take. This will be probably your only chance for generations,” he said at the time.

At the G7, he pauses to compliment the leadership of Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, who is sitting beside him, before acknowledging the brutal crackdown by the Iranian regime against anti-government protesters earlier this year — which helped catalyze the US-Israeli campaign — though he doesn’t linger on the subject.

Qatar “is a country where the emir is so respected and the prime minister is so respected by the people. And that’s the way a country should run. It should run out of respect, not fear,” Trump says, before acknowledging that, “as you know, at least 42,000 protesters were killed in Iran” during anti-regime protests earlier this year. He calls the execution of protesters “tough stuff.”

“Working with Qatar and the people of Qatar was really a pleasure. They were tough, they were strong, they are closest to Iran physically. You were in a more dangerous position, but I do have to say you fought and you helped us and with great bravery,” Trump says, suggesting that Qatar joined the US in striking Iran — something Doha has not publicly confirmed.