Interviewer: A reporter of the American CBS Television
Q: [Your Eminence, we have received continuous reports, suggesting that the Shah will either leave Iran in the near future or he has already left the country. Would you recognize the government that Bakhtiyar is going to form? And would you put an end to the demonstrations?]
A: We will not recognize any government with the existence of a monarchical regime.
Q: [Your Eminence, you have earlier said that the Shah should leave the country, but now you say that he should be tried and punished according to the Islamic law and that if he is convicted, his least sentence would be life imprisonment. Does it mean that the Shah will be considered a fugitive, if he leaves Iran?]
A: Yes, the Shah should be tried. And if he flees, he should be tried wherever he is found. And the least punishment, besides compensating for his crimes, is life imprisonment. But it is clear to everybody that he has massacred the people and should be executed.
Q: [Your Eminence, if you do not acknowledge Bakhtiyar, whom do you acknowledge? Do you have a list of those who will hold positions in the future government?]
A: I have chosen some people, but cannot introduce them until the end of the task.
Q: [Your Eminence, if your intended government is formed, would Iran's oil policy be within the framework of OPEC? Will you consider the US a good oil customer of Iran just like during the Shah's time?]
A: We will study about the OPEC after the formation of the new government, and the experts will decide about it. But the US has not been a good customer so far, because it has not been paying for the oil.
Q: [Your Eminence, when will you return to Iran?]
A: Whenever I deem it appropriate.
Q: [Do you deem it appropriate to return to Iran now?]
A: Not today.