Iran’s Regime Is Running on Fumes | Mehrdad Youssefiani on Bolling.

0:00 All right, this next guest was born in Tran and raised in Japan. He's an American of Kurdish Iranian heritage and a seasoned exile strategist who focuses on regime change advocacy and believes the Iranian regime is near its end. He served as the chief strategic counselor to Iran's crown prince. And he's I'm happy to have Mdad Marty Yusfani with us. Yusfani with us. Hope I said that right, sir. Um, so you say regime change is within our reach. Do you do you really believe that? Well, Larry, thank you for having me to to begin with and to your audience. Uh the reason I say that is just because of the the general picture. You look at the regime, it is literally running on fumes, economic collapse, meaning it has massive hyperinflation. Food is at 280%.

0:50 You just imagine that. Deep chronic unemployment, currency collapse, energy shortage, rising poverty rate. Look at this. 50% according to the regime statistics, 50% of the Iranian population of 92 million are approaching uh uh the the poverty line. That's about 45 million people. These people have been violated politically. They're suppressed socially. Women are not allowed to uh dress as they will. Men are not allowed to find the level of employment and sort of lifestyle they want to bring to their families. So it's a population standing in against a regime that has not been able to deliver. Add to that the condition that we have at war. So that's why I say the regime is standing on its last leg.

1:37 Okay. But they've always they've gone you or they've gone through periods of this over and over throughout throughout the history, right? I mean there's you know certainly last 47 years there have been moments where they did have massive inflation. They did have their economy starved off, but but they always seem to be willing to to fight that fight. It feels to me like they're willing to fight for the death to prevail against the evil Satan, United States, or the lesser evil Satan. Maybe I have them reversed in Israel. I I just don't see it. And and sir, I've I've I've called for I've made this comment. The only way there's actual regime change in Iran is when the 91 million people, not the 2 million IRGC members or military, but the n other million people there stand up and say, "No, enough is enough.

2:21 People will die." But it would be the only thing that I would see that would be actual regime change. We're just getting whack-a-ole fanatical um Islamists from with a different name. You're absolutely right, Eric. Uh the difference here is we have the added element of unwanted war and bombs falling on on the heads of the people. You're absolutely right that the only solution stands with the Iranian people. The 92 million people inside Iran. Of course, those of us who are in exile now have a role to play in terms of amplifying their voices. But the solution is inside Iran investing in the civil society in the various ethnic groups that stand in Iran and the and and and bringing sort of patronage to them, giving them the confidence so that they can counter uh the the brutal suppressive machine you mentioned the 2 million plus IRGC and basie forces who just proved few months ago that they are willing, able and capable of slaughtering tens of thousands. So I

3:24 think uh the idea uh that the world is looking at on one front war and bombs falling and on the other hand the Iranian people taking on bullets that's been a challenge that's been why we've not been able to produce the level of energy in the streets of Iran. So I think once this phase of punitive containment which I call punitive containment whereby the regime is being contained at the same time every time it it raises it heads it takes punishment severe punishment. Once this is over whether it's after epic fury 2 or somewhere there in the middle I think once that's over I think focus can be brought on the Iranian people and how they can be empowered to do the job. And that's what people like myself and and the teams that are looking at the domestic uh picture of Iran, we're figuring out how and where and why uh we're need to be able to do it better.

4:17 We're talking to Mdad Ysefani. Mdad, um there I would say they're credible reports that the people in Venezuela when the Trump administration removed Nicholas Maduro and imprisoned them here, the people generally were happy because it was a was a dictatorship there that the people were starving. They were economically starved for food, money, resources. I don't feel the same thing with Iran. When so when they when the Iranian people see billboards of of President Trump in a casket or we see these videos of of Melania Trump, here's where you can assassinate her or Baron Trump.

4:53 Do they hate us too? Do they generally the Iranian people hate America too? Because I think the Venezuelans were kind of relieved that what we did there. I don't get the same sense from Iran. Eric, let's be clear on this. There's absolutely no question that this is referencing the regime's own domestic secret public opinion surveys. There is no question that there's an overwhelming rejection of the regime upwards of 90%. Sir, I don't mean to interrupt. I agree with you. They don't like what's going on cuz they're getting their ass handed to them and they're starving and there's no fuel and maybe the roads are now being bombed. But don't they still blame the evil United States for all that Eric, two things can hold true at the same time. A population of 92 million can hate the ruling regime at the same time not want bombs on their heads. So the Iranian people are c are caught in this duality. Do do they favor nationalism? Do they protect their own well-being and their families? Or do they withstand the pressures of the regime? That's the duality of the

5:54 Iranian people. Do not do not mistake the projection and and the propaganda of the regime and these uh sort of posters and these videos that they put out with what the mood in the in the streets of Iran are. I guarantee you that the Iranian people every chance they've had has been to communicate to the world and to the regime itself that it rejects it. It just needs the opportunity to find its uh breath and to fight back when they can. Every two years we've had massive demonstrations. I think the next waves are getting closer and closer and the energy level is sort of reaching that boiling point that we desire.

6:32 Maybe there's another country that would maybe pave that a little bit a little bit nicer for the Iranian people perhaps. Help us with um with this back and forth between the Trump administration and the Iranian whoever is is making these announcements from Iran. Trump says we're close to a deal with with to remove the blockade in the straight of Hormuz. They say, "We're not negotiating at all." Trump says, "We're about to bomb him off the face of the earth." And he says, "You know what? They want a deal." They practically beg me for a negotiation. They say, "We don't know what the hell he's talking about. We're fight." Just game that out for us what's really true.

7:06 Sure. The duality that we see today has been consistent for 47 years. The regime has always played this good cop bad cop game that we're all familiar with. But right now, the Iran, the American population are seeing it in practice. This is the frustration that we see with the president. Yes, he declares that they are communicating. They are negotiating, but they're in fact actually exchanging messages. That's a little bit different than sitting across a table and in fact negotiating. The negotiations that the president is is perceiving is in fact exchanging messages. Now, on the domestic front, the issue that we have here is that the Iranian regime has really crystallized two uh uh uh poles. You have the uh the militants that have come out as a result of the bombing campaign. They appear to be gaining the the upper hand in in the negotiations. And then you have those who recognize that only peace and calming down can save the regime's neck.

8:03 So we're trying to figure out which camp right now at this point it's the more militant camp that has the upper hand because they rely on the fact that they prove and they suggest that at every turn they cannot trust the United States and Western powers. On the other hand, United States and Western powers has has rightly observed that the Iranian regime cannot be trusted. Why? Because there's not one person that speaks. There's not one team that speaks. there's not one team that that can offer a deal and actually deliver. Uh so this is the the frustration that we see. But uh what's happening is that I think this pressure is actually breaking down uh bringing deeper fures within the regime.

8:46 I got 30 seconds. Please keep it tight to 30 seconds. Is JD Vance the right person to be negotiating this deal? Well, I think JD Vance is following the marching orders of the president. I don't know where the strategic direction is there. So I think it all starts from the top and irrespective of JD Vance or anybody else it all comes from pus Gonna leave it right there. We can say thank you very much to Mdad Marty Yusfani. Thank you. Director of the Iran freedom project. Thank you sir. Thank you.