Jason Rezaian

Thanks for having me, Katie.

I appreciate it.

I want to start by saying that we've been at some level of conflict with Iran since 1979.

So we've never been at peace with the Islamic Republic.

One of the first things that they did was take American diplomats and held them hostage in our embassy in Tehran.

So this enmity, animosity, is not new.

I think where we are right now in this ceasefire, if I had to guess, I don't think that the Trump administration, President Trump in particular, wants to attack Iran again.

It seems pretty obvious to me from his statements, right?

I was going to do it last night, but, you know, I got talked out of it.

Changed my mind.

So, you know, I think it's pretty clear that the economic pain that we're feeling at home

has changed his attitude and desire for regime change, if that was his desire in the first place.

I don't think that if you asked him, he'd have a clear answer of why he got into this in the first place.

That being said, I mean, I think Israel in particular, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to keep going.

I think he's the wild card in this situation.

And then also, the level of pain and suffering

that the Iranian regime is ready to absorb and ready to force its public to absorb, I think is beyond what we imagined, right?

I also don't want to conflate the people of Iran with the regime.

Of course.

The regime is ready to keep taking hits, to keep fighting.