Jun 30, 2018

US President Donald Trump allies Newt Gingrich and Rudy Giuliani on Saturday urged regime change in Iran, saying the prospect was closer than ever after the Islamic Republic was hit by a wave of strikes and protests.

Former House speaker Gingrich and ex-New York mayor Giuliani also told a rally of thousands of Iranian opposition supporters in Paris that Trump needed to turn up the heat on European countries still seeking to do business with Tehran despite reimposed US sanctions.

"The only way to safety in the region is to replace the dictatorship with a democracy and that has to be our goal," Gingrich told the Free Iran rally, organised by exiled opponents including the former rebel People's Mojahedin which is banned in Iran.

He stressed he did not speak for the Trump administration, but added: "It seems to me there would be a rather happy celebration should regime change occur."

Gingrich said he did not support arming the Iranian opposition, saying Trump should instead heap on more sanctions after pulling out of the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers.