Shortly after Vice President JD Vance disputed the United States’ interest in “regime change” in Iran on Sunday, President Donald Trump signaled openness to a shake-up in the country’s leadership.
“It’s not politically correct to use the term, ‘Regime Change,’ but if the current Iranian Regime is unable to MAKE IRAN GREAT AGAIN, why wouldn’t there be a Regime change??? MIGA!!!,” Trump wrote in a Truth Social post.
Trump’s statement came after Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth emphasized that U.S. strikes on Iran were an “intentionally limited” operation focused on eliminating the country’s nuclear capabilities — and not fueling a larger conflict.
“Our view has been very clear that we don’t want a regime change,” Vance said in a Sunday NBC News interview.
“This mission was not, and has not been, about regime change,” Hegseth told reporters during a Sunday briefing.
Trump’s post later Sunday notably muddied the administration’s position.
Last week, Trump wrote that the U.S. knew where Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was hiding, but that “We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now.” Previously, Trump has criticized the U.S. role in wars that spurred “regime changes” in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, meanwhile, has said that “regime change” in Iran is not a goal of the attacks his country has launched, though it could be a result.
