Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran’s last shah who still uses the title crown prince of Iran, has two confirmed public appearances in Europe in early November: a lecture at Belgium’s Royal Military Academy in Brussels on Nov. 6 and a speech in Frankfurt on Nov. 7, where he is set to accept Germany’s Freedom Prize in trust for “the Iranian people.” This roundup of Reza Pahlavi news collects his recent quotes, each with its date and source, along with his announced schedule and the debates around both.
For background on repression and executions in Iran, see our report on the Iranian people, the IRGC and the record execution count.
Reza Pahlavi’s schedule: upcoming appearances
Thursday, Nov. 5 – Brussels (tentative, private). Belgium’s Chamber of Representatives will not host an official visit that had been planned for Nov. 5. The Chamber’s Conference of Presidents dropped it on Oct. 21 after Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Prévot advised caution, Belga News Agency reported. The liberal MR parliamentary group, which proposed the invitation, said “Our parliamentary group’s private invitation remains on the table.” No date, time or venue for a private meeting has been announced, so it should be treated as reported, not confirmed.
Friday, Nov. 6 – Royal Military Academy, Brussels. Pahlavi will give a lecture at the academy at the invitation of Belgian Defense Minister Theo Francken, Belga reported. Pahlavi confirmed the speech in an Oct. 18 statement (quoted below). Associations representing Iranian opposition groups had written to the Chamber asking it to withdraw its own invitation, Belga reported.
Saturday, Nov. 7 – St. Paul’s Church (Paulskirche), Frankfurt. The Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom will present its 2026 Freedom Prize to the Iranian people from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. local time (5 to 6:30 a.m. ET) at Paulsplatz 1. Its official program lists Pahlavi for the acceptance “in trust” and a speech. Admission is free with registration, and a livestream is planned. Our earlier story covers the Freedom Prize and the criticism it has drawn.
No other public speeches, hearings or rallies with a confirmed date and place had been announced as of Oct. 26. The Boston Report will add them once they are.
Notable recent appearances
On Sept. 17, Pahlavi wrote on X that he was “pleased today to meet virtually with Coalition leaders Angus Taylor and Ted O’Brien” in Australia. On Sept. 21, he thanked Canadian Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre “for your warm welcome back to Canada,” saying Poilievre and deputy leader Melissa Lantsman had joined “thousands of Iranians and friends of Iran” at the event. On Oct. 23, Le Figaro published his op-ed addressed to France’s presidential candidates, written for the anniversary of the 1983 Drakkar bombing in Beirut, which killed 58 French soldiers.
Reza Pahlavi’s latest quotes
All quotes below are exact, taken from his verified X account, @PahlaviReza, or his official website.
- Oct. 25, on Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado’s return home: “The people of Iran stand with the people of Venezuela. When our nations are free, we will be steadfast friends.” (X)
- Oct. 23, summarizing his Le Figaro op-ed: “A free Iran is both a moral imperative and a strategic necessity: it would weaken terrorist proxies, strengthen regional security, and deprive the Kremlin of a key ally.” (rezapahlavi.org)
- Oct. 18, on the Brussels speech: “the Islamic Republic remains a serious state security threat to Europe and beyond. I will address these critical security challenges in my speech at the Academy.” (X)
- Oct. 18, in a message to Iranian Americans before the U.S. midterm elections: “Ask every candidate, Republican or Democrat, whether they understand that the problem is the regime itself.” He added: “The Islamic Republic is not the solution to the crisis. It is the root of the crisis.” (X)
- Oct. 11, after an attack on King Khalid airport in Riyadh: “Yesterday’s horrific attack on the King Khalid airport in Riyadh is the latest proof that the regime in Tehran will never seek peace.” (X)
- Oct. 7, on the third anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel: “A free Iran will be a friend and partner to Israel.” (X)
- Sept. 16, on the fourth anniversary of Mahsa Amini’s death: he described a “common national purpose: Iran first, freedom for all, and the reclaiming of our country.” (X)
Who is Reza Pahlavi? Background on the crown prince of Iran
Pahlavi was born in Tehran on Oct. 31, 1960, the eldest son of Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi and Empress Farah. He left Iran for pilot training in the United States in 1978 and has lived in exile since the 1979 revolution that ended the monarchy, according to his Wikipedia biography.
In his own words, his stated goals include a democratic, secular state. In a Feb. 27, 2026 message on his official website, he wrote: “We are committed, in a united and democratic Iran, under the Lion and Sun flag, to end all discrimination and to guarantee individual freedoms and the equality of citizens before the law.” In a March 14 message, he wrote: “Under my leadership, the Transition System will be ready — the moment the Islamic Republic falls — to take up the administration of the country.”
His prominence is contested. In Oct. 20 advice to Belgium’s Chamber, Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Prévot wrote that “neither Mr Pahlavi himself nor his political ambitions enjoy unanimous support among the Iranian population,” Belga reported. He added that “it is exclusively for the Iranian people to determine their political future.”
What polling shows
Independent polling inside Iran is limited. The Netherlands-based group GAMAAN surveys Iranians online, so its results reflect people who can reach the survey. In its June 2024 survey of 77,216 respondents, 31% named Pahlavi as a first or second preferred political figure. That was the highest share of any figure in the survey, but it is not a majority, and GAMAAN reported large regional differences.
The U.S. government has designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the main target of Pahlavi’s statements, as a Foreign Terrorist Organization since 2019, according to the State Department’s list. For Boston’s connection to the story, see our timeline of the Iran protests and Boston’s Iranian community.
FAQ: Reza Pahlavi news
Where is Reza Pahlavi’s next speech?
His next announced speech is on Nov. 6 at Belgium’s Royal Military Academy in Brussels, followed on Nov. 7 by the Freedom Prize ceremony at St. Paul’s Church in Frankfurt.
Will the Frankfurt speech be livestreamed?
Yes. The Friedrich Naumann Foundation says registered attendees who can’t get a seat will receive livestream access.
Why is he called the crown prince of Iran?
He was heir to the throne when the monarchy fell in 1979. Iran has no monarchy today, and he continues to use the title.
Is Reza Pahlavi running for office?
No election inside Iran is scheduled in which he could run. He has described his role as leading a transition after the Islamic Republic.
Featured image: Reza Pahlavi speaking at an event in 2015. Photo by Gage Skidmore / Wikimedia Commons, licensed CC BY-SA 2.0; cropped.
Sources
- Reza Pahlavi, verified X account @PahlaviReza (posts dated Sept. 16 to Oct. 25, 2026, linked above)
- rezapahlavi.org: Message on Belgium’s Royal Military Academy invitation (Oct. 18, 2026)
- rezapahlavi.org: Op-ed in Le Figaro (Oct. 23, 2026)
- rezapahlavi.org: Transition System message (March 14, 2026)
- rezapahlavi.org: Unity and Democracy Message (Feb. 27, 2026)
- Le Figaro: Reza Pahlavi op-ed (Oct. 23, 2026, in French)
- Belga: House of Representatives will not invite Reza Pahlavi
- Belga: Minister Prévot cautious about welcoming Reza Pahlavi
- Friedrich Naumann Foundation: Freiheitspreis 2026 event program (in German)
- GAMAAN: Iranians’ Political Preferences in 2024 (PDF)
- U.S. Department of State: Foreign Terrorist Organizations
- Wikipedia: Reza Pahlavi, Crown Prince of Iran
Additional sources
- rezapahlavi.org: Statements archive
- U.S. Department of State: Iran country page
- Congressional Research Service: Iran: Background and U.S. Policy
- UN OHCHR: Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Iran
- Federal Register: IRGC designation notice (2019)
- Friedrich Naumann Foundation: Freedom Prize 2026 announcement (English)
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