Iran regime doomed if protest movement finds leader - Azerbaijani expert
On Reza Pahlavi's prospects

INTERVIEWS  22 February 2023 - 17:22

The political activation of Iranian Shah Reza Pahlavi's heir is a source of serious concern for Tehran's mullah regime. And it appears that everything is very serious this time: the West appears to have decided on the "Iranian issue" in terms of potential leaders.

The move is quite correct since part of Iranian society is ready to support Reza Pahlavi's claims. And it is no coincidence that the Iranian Shah's son addressed his message to it in an interview with the world media, calling the popular unrest a "revolution" and stating that "this process is welcomed and supported by all freedom-loving people of the world" and that this is the only way to "turn Iran into a free country".

As for the terrorist attack against the Azerbaijani embassy, Reza Pahlavi said that the Iranian regime ignores international laws. The attack on the Azerbaijani embassy in Tehran is a violation of international law.

I must say that it was not by chance that he started talking about the attack on the Azerbaijani diplomatic mission. As you know, Reza Pahlavi is closely connected with the people of South Azerbaijan: the heir's mother, Farah, is an ethnic Azerbaijani.

"Every person living on the territory of Iran should treat the residents of South Azerbaijan with respect," he demanded in his interview, clearly counting on the support of the protest masses from this region of Iran.



Will Reza Pahlavi be able to become the one who, if he comes to power, will ensure the observance of the rights of Iranian Azerbaijanis and make Iran a friendly state to Azerbaijan, abandoning all the toxic priorities of the current Iranian regime? And most importantly, is the people of Iran itself capable of rallying around a new leader?

In an interview with Caliber.Az, Azerbaijani political scientist and diplomat Fikrat Sadikhov noted that it is obvious that the world community, represented by world powers, is firmly aimed at changing the regime of the mullahcracy in Iran.

"It was not by chance that the son of the former shah was invited to Munich. I think that it is in him that the West sees the new leader of democratic Iran, betting on those who are abroad, in exile, in immigration, and actively opposes the current Iranian regime," the political scientist believes.

Is Azerbaijan satisfied with the Pahlavi figure, Sadikhov believes that this is a separate issue, in any case, he is a man of Western civilisation and democratic beliefs, despite the fact that he grew up in a monarchical family.

"And most importantly, he grew up under an Azerbaijani mother's care," the expert emphasises.

However, he said that much depends on the new regime representatives' attitude towards the Azerbaijanis of Iran.

"There may be some conflicts here, but there is another important factor, because, in fact, the Azerbaijani population is the core of the protest movement. And therefore, it is unlikely that the new leader, if he comes to power, will ignore its interests. But I think that, besides the ethnic issue, there are other important points. A sensible politician, who, I hope, will become the new Iran leader, should be aware that it is still a multinational state consisting of many national groups and peoples. And Azerbaijanis have long been not a minority, but a people representing a significant force in Iran in general. And he needs to rely on this majority, because progress, reforms, and further economic prosperity will be based on mutual agreement with the population, which today is protesting against the Iranian clerics and radicals in power," Sadikhov said.


According to the political scientist, Pahlavi was invited to Munich precisely to listen to how he represents the future of Iran, to determine his ability to lead this country, to resist the mullahcracy, as they say, to find out his "program goals".

As for the mass protests in Iran, according to Sadikhov's observations, they occur every time with a "tendency to fade".

"The protesters are persecuted, repressions are carried out, they are tortured, hanged – and all this does not stop them. But, so far, everything has been spontaneous because there are no forces leading the protesters to overthrow the government, defining strategic objectives, goals, and a program within which to act. It is this power that they lack. If Reza Pahlavi, Shah's son, is able to do so, they will, of course, achieve some success; otherwise, everything will remain of the same spontaneous, disorderly nature," the political scientist concluded.

Caliber.Az