Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran's last Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, reaffirmed his commitment to freeing Iran from its clerical regime, stating: "Our fight is to liberate ourselves from the regime" of the mullahs. His remarks came in response to ongoing diplomatic contacts between the United States and Iran regarding Tehran's nuclear program.
Pahlavi, who has long been a prominent voice among Iranian opposition figures in exile, expressed hope that the international community and the free world would recognize that any agreement reached with the Islamic Republic does not represent the will of the Iranian people. He has consistently argued that the regime in Tehran lacks democratic legitimacy and that Iranians deserve the right to determine their own future through free elections.
His comments come amid reports of renewed US-Iran diplomatic engagement in 2025 and early 2026, with Washington seeking to curb Iran's nuclear advances. Critics of engagement with Tehran, including Pahlavi and other opposition figures, warn that negotiations risk legitimizing a government they say suppresses its own population.
Pahlavi has called on Western governments to support the Iranian people's aspirations for a secular, democratic government, rather than focusing solely on nuclear containment deals with the current leadership. He remains one of the most internationally recognized figures of the Iranian opposition diaspora.
