Who is Reza Pahlavi, son of the last Iranian shah, now living in the U.S.?

Reza Pahlavi II, the exiled crown prince and son of the last shah of Irani, is a key figure in the opposition to Iran’s clerical regime. Experts, however, note that the U.S.-based 65-year-old lacks sufficient support inside the country, and many analysts maintain that returning to Iran is not part of his plans. For now, he remains the only visible face of a pre‑revolutionary order that some in the West hope might one day reemerge.

Who is Reza Pahlavi?

Born in 1960), Pahlavi is the eldest son of Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and Empress Farah Diba. As heir to the Pahlavi dynasty, he has been the most recognizable figure of Iran’s monarchist opposition in exile. After leaving Iran in 1978, he trained as a pilot in Texas and has spent most of his life in the U.S. - primarily in Potomac, Maryland, though some accounts place his residence in the greater Washington, D.C. area, where he lived with his family. He also studied at Williams College in Massachusetts, though he did not complete a degree there, and later attended the University of Southern California (USC), where he pursued a political science program in 1985.

Pahlavi has long been a prominent voice within the Iranian diaspora and one of the opposition leaders most frequently cited during the wave of protests that began last year. He has repeatedly called for nationwide mobilizations and advocates for a democratic transition - though not necessarily the automatic restoration of the monarchy. His proposal centers on holding an internationally supervised referendum to determine Iran’s future political system.

Consistently pro‑Western and openly supportive of Israel, Pahlavi envisions a future Iran aligned with Western democracies. Think tanks around the world regularly seek his views as they map out potential scenarios for a post–Islamic Republic Iran.

Historically, the CIA cooperated closely with his father, particularly during and after the 1953 coup against Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh. According to a classified report from the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee, the CIA also played a key role in forming SAVAK, the shah’s secret police.

In 2023, several members of the European Parliament - especially from northern Europe - actively pushed for Pahlavi’s participation in European forums and urged institutions to grant him political space. He was invited to the European Parliament by Swedish MEP Charlie Weimers, where he delivered a speech calling on the EU for “maximum pressure” on the Islamic Republic. He drew a sharp line between the Iranian people and the regime and urged that frozen Iranian assets be converted into a strike fund for Iranian workers.

That February in Brussels, he met with MPs from various parties to discuss potential cooperation between European governments and the Iranian opposition, the possible shape of a transitional government, and the need for sanctions targeting the IRGC and the regime’s machinery of repression.

What kind of Iran does Reza Pahlavi envision?

Based on his speeches, interviews, and official statements, Pahlavi’s political vision is centered on a liberal democracy rooted in a constitutional transition. He rejects imposing either a monarchy or a republic and instead proposes a free national referendum to decide the country’s political model.

He advocates for a secular state - one without clerical authority or religious oversight - drawing inspiration from Western democracies. In his addresses to European parliaments, he consistently emphasizes human rights, the separation of powers, press freedom, judicial independence, and core civic liberties.

Economically, Pahlavi supports a liberalized market system and seeks full integration with the West, including strategic partnerships with the U.S. and open relations with Israel. He wants to strengthen Iran’s secular national identity as a counterweight to the Islamic Republic’s ideological project - one of the most complex cultural and political challenges within the country.

How has Pahlavi reacted to Ali Khamenei death?

In the wake of Iranian state media’s announcement that Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, died during this weekend’s U.S.-Israeli attack on the Middle Eastern country, Pahlavi said, in part, in a message on social media:

“My fellow compatriots, Ali Khamenei, the bloodthirsty despot of our time, the murderer of tens of thousands of Iran’s bravest sons and daughters, has been erased from the face of history. With his death, the Islamic Republic has in effect reached its end and will very soon be consigned to the dustbin of history.

“Any attempt by the remnants of the regime to appoint a successor to Khamenei is doomed to fail from the outset. Whoever they place in his stead will have neither legitimacy nor longevity, and will undoubtedly be complicit in the crimes of this regime as well.

“To the military, law enforcement, and security forces: any effort to preserve a collapsing regime will fail. This is your final opportunity to join the nation, to help ensure Iran’s stable transition to a free and prosperous future, and to take part in building that future.”

Pahlavi’s full message:

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