REZA PAHLAVI INTERVIEWED

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000706420002-4
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 12, 2011
• Sequence Number: 2
• Publication Date: November 23, 1986
• Content Type: REPORT

Declassified and Approved For Release 2011/12/12 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000706420002-4
RADIO TV REPORTS, INC.
4701 WILLARD AVENUE, CHEVY CHASE, MARYLAND 20815 [phone]
STATION W U S A- T V
CBS Network
DATE November 23, 1986 1:00 P.M. CITY Washington, D.C.
S LESLEY STAHL: For some of the two million Iranian
exiles, the son of the late Shah is their new Shah. We asked him
what he thinks of the President's overtures to Iran.
REZA PAHLAVI: I believe that it is morally
unjustifiable to sell arms to either side, under the present
circumstances.
STAHL: What about the idea that the President sanc-
tioned this while his policy was to embargo and he went around
the world asking other countries not to do exactly what he did?
PAHLAVI: Well, the President has stated that his
embargo stands, although he said that there might be minor
situations under extraordinary circumstances when an exception
could be made.
But I'm not aware of all the facts, as far as those
extraordinary circumstances are. So I cannot really render a
judgment on this.
STAHL: You seem very mild in your reaction, I must say.
I thought you'd be furious.
PAHLAVI: Well, you see, making contact with elements in
Iran, in my interpretation, that this will create more
dissension, more division within ranks of the regime, and
therefore shorten the life of the regime. I consider it
positive, not negative.
STAHL: Then you do accept the idea that there are
moderates in the government.
OFFICES IN WASHINGTON D C ? NEW YORK ? LOS ANGELES ? CHICAGO ? DETROIT ? AND OTHER PRINCIPAL CITIES
Declassified and Approved For Release 2011/12/12 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000706420002-4
 Declassified and Approved For Release 2011/12/12 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000706420002-4
PAHLAVI: First of all, I don't think that there is such
a thing as a moderate in Iran today. There may be a difference
of opinion, and that's this. There are some who think they still
could milk the Western cow, and some who would like to kill it in
order to devour the flesh.
The second point that is crucial to realize is that this
regime cannot moderate itself. The people who are at the helm,
so to speak, rely on a bunch of terrorists who want to export the
revolution. It will be political suicide for any of those
elements to cross the terrorists.
STAHL: When your father was toppled, opposition to him
seemed to be from virtually every layer of society. Why do you
think they would turn back to something they had rejected rather
than to go on to get a third thing?
PAHLAVI: If there were any reactions -- and I'm very
firm on this issue -- it was not against monarchy. It might have
been against a government or the policies of a certain
government, or issue of that sort.
STAHL: It was your father. You have the same name.
PAHLAVI: And I'm proud to have it.
STAHL: But, you know, this power struggle that we keep
hearing about going on in the government. And neither side is
talking about returning power to you. Where do you see that the
people of Iran want to go back to the Shah?
PAHLAVI: When you speak of Iran, it's an entirely new
ba11game. It's a new scene. It's a new Iran. It's a new
generation. There's a difference between generations. There's a
difference between sons and fathers.
In that sense, the times will be in the future
different, and my policies or my attitude towards the events and
situation will be quite different.
But let me tell you one thing. I will not sit in
judgment of my father. I would rather have history play that
role, beyond any of our capabilities.
STAHL: It has just been reported, fairly recently, that
your secret television broadcast into Iran was funded by the CIA.
Did you know that before?
PAHLAVI: Look, I didn't have any awareness of the
details. Do you mean that I personally have taken money from the
CIA?
Declassified and Approved For Release 2011/12/12 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000706420002-4
 Declassified and Approved For Release 2011/12/12 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000706420002-4
STAHL: Well, if that broadcast was funded...
PAHLAVI: No. That I can flatly deny. That's never
been the case, nor will it be.
STAHL: Does it hurt you with your followers for them to
find out of CIA funding, or not?
PAHLAVI: In foreign policy, strategic interest often
comes to clash with moral obligations. But in the case of Iran,
they both point to the same solution: overthrow Khomeini. But
that's not your job. It's mine and my fellow Iranians.
Now, if you want to be supportive, fine. But we aim to
succeed, with or without you.
Declassified and Approved For Release 2011/12/12 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000706420002-4