Speaking with Radio Sputnik's Loud & Clear Thursday, Mohammad Marandi, an expert on American studies and postcolonial literature who teaches at the University of Tehran, noted that people in Iran were upset about 45's decision, but that it also helped unite many in the country.
"In Iran, people are understandably angry," Marandi told show hosts Brian Becker and John Kiriakou. "Over the past three years, the United States has been repeatedly violating the JCPOA… as we speak, even before Trump left the agreement, if I wanted to send a dollar abroad or receive a dollar from abroad… it's impossible."
"The banking system is still not connected to the global banking sector and that is because the United States is prohibiting and it's threatening banks, insurance companies and major businesses from doing business with Iran. So even before this the US was violating [the agreement]," Marandi continued.
"I think what has happened is that, ironically, Trump has united Iranian politicians… they've come to an agreement on how to deal with the United States, which is to just stop negotiating."
Noting the lack of reporting on Iran's reaction to Trump's Tuesday announcement, Marandi pointed out that it really wasn't a surprise that Western media was dropping the ball.
"I'm not surprised [about the lack of reports], that's how it usually is: Iran rarely has a voice," he told Kiriakou. "It's always a one-sided discussion when it comes to Iran."
Marandi also said former US President Barack Obama, who played a major role in the 2015 agreement, was really just another American figure pushing Iran under the bus.
"Personally, I think it was because Obama wanted to have his cake and eat it too… he wanted to have an agreement, but he wanted to continue to undermine Iran and I think that's just a general pattern when it comes to Iran and the United States," Marandi told Becker. "The United States has never abided by any of its agreements with Iran. When the Iranians were cooperating with the United States in Afghanistan after 9/11, Iran was immediately called the Axis of Evil."
"I think that what Trump is now doing is pushing Iran, Russia and China closer to each other. I don't have much confidence in the Europeans growing a spine anytime soon… but the Russians and the Chinese are much more reliable partners for Iran," he added, before suggesting that Europe, fearing the US' wrath, would close itself off from the Middle Eastern country.
"This hurts US interest more than anyone else," he stressed.
