Exiled Iranian prince tells Trump he can be ‘one of history’s great peacemakers’ amid talk of regime change

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FIRST ON FOX – As U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran give way to an historical ceasefire, opposition figures are stepping forward with renewed urgency — calling on the United States to support regime change led by the Iranian people. 

One of the most prominent voices is that of the exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, the eldest son of the late Shah of Iran, who has long advocated for a secular and democratic alternative to the Islamic Republic.

Born in Tehran in 1960, Pahlavi was officially named crown prince during his father’s coronation in 1967. In 1978, at the age of 17, he left Iran for military training with the United States Air Force in Texas. Months later, his family was forced into exile following the 1979 Islamic Revolution, and the monarchy was replaced by an Islamic theocratic regime that has ruled Iran ever since.

In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, the prince discussed the growing resistance inside Iran, his message to the military and why he believes now is the moment for President Donald Trump to act in support of the Iranian people. 

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Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s toppled Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, speaks during a press conference on Monday, June 23, 2025 in Paris. (Thomas Padilla/AP Photo)

Fox News Digital: What’s your message to President Trump and the American people?

Reza Pahlavi: President Trump is looking for peace in the Middle East and an end to chaos. He wants to keep American troops safe and finally bring them home. I want the exact same thing. But the current regime in Iran does not want this. It thrives on chaos and bloodshed. So true peace can only happen when the Islamic Republic is gone. 

President Donald Trump speaks during a media conference at the end of the NATO summit in The Hague, Netherlands, on Wednesday, June 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

So my message to President Trump is this: the way to end the chaos and destruction is to help the people of Iran to end this regime and take their country back. He can leave a lasting legacy and be one of history’s great peacemakers if this happens. I am ready to be his partner in this process and this mission and lead our nation into a peaceful, democratic future once again aligned with regional stability and American interests. Working with President Trump, we can bring down the world’s most dangerous regime—and fill the void not with chaos, but with strength, order, and freedom.

Iranian worshipers pray under a banner featuring a giant portrait of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a ceremony commemorating assassinated Hamas Leader, Ismail Haniyeh, at the Imam Khomeini Grand Mosque in Tehran, Iran, on Aug. 9, 2024. (Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

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FND: You stated “a broad coalition of Iranians” is already working to build a post-regime future. Who are the key players in that coalition, and how are they coordinating inside and outside the country?

RP: This coalition spans across sectors and ideologies—former officials, dissidents, technocrats, activists, women’s rights leaders, workers, students and members of the diaspora. Inside Iran, they’re organizing resistance and preparing for a democratic transition. Outside, we’re building the institutional groundwork for the day after: from transitional justice to economic recovery. Most importantly, to ensure chaos does not ensue and we can secure a peaceful transition. What unites us is not a political party, but a single goal—freeing Iran from tyranny and rebuilding it as a sovereign, democratic nation.

People light a fire during a protest over the death of Mahsa Amini, a woman who died after being arrested by the Islamic Republic’s “morality police,” in Tehran, Iran, on Sept. 21, 2022. (West Asia News Agency)

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FND: You stress that the Iranian military and security forces should defect and join the people. Have you been in touch with any current or former elements of the armed forces, and do you see signs of that happening?

RP : Yes—quietly, but clearly. I’ve had conversations with both former and current members of the armed forces. Many of them love their country but despise what the regime has turned it into. We are seeing growing cracks — hesitation to follow orders, defections, and signs of passive resistance. In recent days, I have launched a formal channel for these communications to increase. My message to them is simple: history is being written now. Stand with your nation, not the criminals. You will be remembered for your choice.

Iranian opposition leader and son of the last shah of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, holds a press conference in Paris on June 23, 2025. (JOEL SAGET/AFP via Getty Images)

FND: As a trained fighter pilot, what’s your opinion about the U.S. and Israeli air campaign in Iran that has shaken the foundations of Iran’s military infrastructure?

RP: I was proud to wear my country’s uniform, and I have flown many of these fighter jets. To see the state of disrepair and disgrace the Islamic Republic has dragged our armed forces into pains me deeply. The members of the armed forces I speak to share this pain. They hate to see our once proud military used to abuse our people at home and sow chaos and terror abroad. The new Iran I seek will have a once-again proud armed forces that defends our nation and helps establish peace and stability in the Middle East.

FND: You’ve been criticized — also by Iranian dissident leader Maryam Rajavi — for allegedly seeking to restore the monarchy and lacking broad support among Iranians. What do you say to those who claim you have no legitimate mandate and are out of touch with the people inside Iran?

RP: Maryam Rajavi leads a radical cult that fuses Marxist and Islamist ideologies—a group that has killed American soldiers and is completely rejected by Iranians. I don’t respond to attacks from terrorists, especially those with no support on the ground.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamanei. (Iranian Leader’s Press Office – Handout/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

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I am focused on leading this movement and this change, I am not advocating for a particular form of government. Iranians will choose their future form of government in free and fair elections and anyone who wants to deny them this right is not part of the democratic opposition.

My mandate is the trust of my compatriots who chant my name not because I ask for it, but because I have stepped forward to serve them and not myself. When Iran is free, the people—not cults or clerics—will decide our future in a national referendum.

Efrat Lachter is an investigative reporter and war correspondent. Her work has taken her to 40 countries, including Ukraine, Russia, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, and Afghanistan. She is a recipient of the 2024 Knight-Wallace Fellowship for Journalism. Lachter can be followed on X @efratlachter.