US President Donald Trump [EPA Yonhap News]

US President Donald Trump said on the 6th (local time) that it would be acceptable for another religious leader to take over as the successor to Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of Iran, who died in airstrikes by the US and Israel, CNN reported.

According to the report, President Trump said in a phone interview with a CNN reporter that lasted about five minutes, "Would it be okay if Iran had another religious leader, another 'Ayatollah'?" to which he replied, "Probably. It depends on who it is. I don't mind religious leaders."

'Ayatollah' is a term referring to a high-ranking Shia Muslim cleric.

President Trump further emphasized, "I don't dislike religious leaders. I deal with many religious leaders, and they are wonderful."

When asked if he insists on Iran becoming a democratic country, President Trump stated, "No, I'm saying they need to have a fair and just leader there. They need to do a good job, and they need to treat us and Israel well, and they need to treat the other countries in the Middle East, who are all our partners, well."

CNN also reported that President Trump said the previous day that he had about three individuals in mind as Iran's next leader and wanted to choose who would become the next leader.

When asked how that would be possible, President Trump said, "It will happen very easily. It will happen just like it happened in Venezuela," referring to the situation where a swift military operation in Venezuela ousted President Nicolás Maduro and led to a pro-US policy through his successor (interim president Delcy Rodríguez).

He said of Interim President Delcy Rodríguez, who currently governs Venezuela, "We have a great leader. She's doing a fantastic job."

Regarding the surge in oil prices following the attack on Iran, President Trump commented, "It's fine. It's only temporary. It will come down very soon."

President Trump also stated about Cuba, "It will collapse very soon. They really want to negotiate."

He added, "So I'm going to send Marco there and see what happens. We're really focused on this. We have a lot of time, but Cuba has been ready for 50 years."

The 'Marco' mentioned by President Trump is believed to refer to Cuban-American Secretary of State Marco Rubio, indicating his intention to leverage Secretary Rubio, who has ties to Cuba, to resolve the Cuban issue once the situation in Iran is settled.