Trump tells MS NOW Iran has ‘no idea who their leader is’

President Donald Trump told MS NOW on Thursday morning that Iran has “no idea who their leader is” at this moment, an assessment that experts on Iran have said is incorrect.

This Video Is Trending Right Now →

“They’re all messed up. They have no idea who their leader is. You know, we took out, really, three levels of leaders. And everybody that was even close behind him,” he said, referring to the late Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. “So they have a hard time figuring out who the hell can speak for the country. They just don’t know.”

He added that the country’s navy and air force are wiped out, repeating a claim he has often made since the war began.

“They’re really a mess, and now nobody wants to help them, because they no longer have the fear factor,” Trump said. “They’re no longer — they’re no longer the bully of the Middle East.”

Trump spoke to MS NOW after he declared an extension on the precarious ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran on Tuesday, halting his threat to bomb Iranian infrastructure. Trump said the extension was given to allow the Iranians to arrive at a “unified proposal” to end the war.

Meanwhile, the U.S. continued to block ships from entering and exiting Iranian ports as the battle continues over access to the Strait of Hormuz, a key passage for a fifth of the world’s oil. Progress toward ending the war appeared at a standstill on Thursday as both sides gave conflict ing information about whether they would participate in peace negotiations in Pakistan.

Experts on Iran have disagreed with Trump’s claims about the country’s leadership, telling MS NOW that its government is not divided and that claims of deep divisions in Iran or the emergence of a new regime are false.

Vali Nasr, a professor of Middle East studies and international affairs at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies and co-director of the school’s Rethinking Iran Initiative, said that Trump’s erratic claims have likely complicated negotiations.

“I think they are divided on whether to trust Trump or not,” Nasr told MS NOW. “One group says Islamabad is a waste of time and Trump is not serious; another says it could yield results. It is his behavior after last round of talks that has caused a debate.”

Recommended

Jacqueline Alemany

Jacqueline Alemany is co-anchor of “The Weekend” and a Washington correspondent for MS NOW.

David Rohde

David Rohde is the senior national security reporter for MS NOW. Previously he was the senior executive editor for national security and law for NBC News.

Clarissa-Jan Lim

Clarissa-Jan Lim is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW. She was previously a senior reporter and editor at BuzzFeed News.