Two officials in the Trump administration told Politico overnight between Monday and Tuesday that they believe Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, could emerge as the country’s next leader and potentially serve as Washington’s partner in ending the war and moving to the next phase.
The officials said the White House is not currently backing any specific figure and is evaluating several candidates. However, one noted that “he’s a hot name. One of the hottest — but we need to vet them. You can’t rush this.”
President Donald Trump said Monday that the United States is in contact with “very reasonable figures” inside Iran. He did not name them, but in Israel officials assessed he was referring to Ghalibaf, a former Tehran mayor who became parliament speaker after Ali Larijani was killed in the war.
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Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf,, has positioned himself as a hardliner
(Photo: Vahid Salemi/AP)
According to one of the sources, Trump is interested in Iranian oil but does not want to seize Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export terminal, in hopes of reaching an agreement with a future Iranian leader similar to the one achieved in Venezuela with Nicolas Maduro’s successor, Delcy Rodriguez.
“It’s all about installing someone like Delcy Rodriguez, where we say, ‘We’ll keep you there, we won’t take you down. You work with us, give us a good deal — first and foremost on oil,’” the source said.
Ghalibaf, however, a senior figure in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps who previously commanded its air force and was involved in missile development, has positioned himself as a hardliner. On Monday, he flatly denied any contacts with the United States.
“The Iranian people demand full punishment for the aggressors. All Iranian officials stand behind their supreme leader and the people until the goal is achieved. There have been no negotiations with the U.S., and the fake news is meant to manipulate financial and oil markets and to escape the quagmire in which the U.S. and Israel are trapped,” he wrote on X.
Ghalibaf also served as Iran’s internal security chief, where reports say he took a hardline approach to protests — a stark contrast to Venezuela. “Iran has shown it can take hits and still make things difficult for us. They are not going to roll over and hand Trump their oil,” the Politico source said.
Still, the administration believes Venezuela could serve as a model for Iran, and is therefore ruling out exiled crown prince Reza Pahlavi, who, according to Trump’s advisers, lacks legitimacy inside the country. “He grew up abroad. That’s the last thing you want to put in there — it’s chaos,” one official said, while another confirmed Pahlavi is “not on the table.”
“We’re in a phase of testing — who can rise, who wants to, and who is trying,” one administration official added. “When people emerge, we’ll run a quick test. If they’re radical — we’ll take them out.”