TEHRAN – Robert Malley, the former U.S. official who served as lead negotiator for the 2015 nuclear accord, has delivered a scathing critique of Washington’s confrontational Iran policy, calling military action a strategic blunder that backfired catastrophically.

Malley, who served as the U.S. Special Envoy for Iran for over two years under the Biden administration, stated in a Tuesday MSNBC interview that the Israeli regime’s strikes on Iranian territory had paradoxically bolstered Iranian nationalism—while ultimately failing to achieve their intended goals.

"The Iranians are not surrendering," Malley stated unequivocally, underscoring Tehran's resilience in the face of economic sanctions and military strikes.

Malley described the June U.S.-Israeli strikes on nuclear facilities as counterproductive, noting they created "greater aspiration [for advancing nuclear program] and less visibility" into Iran’s nuclear activities.

His assessment mirrors the recent declaration of the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei, that "Iranians are not people who surrender to threats," underscoring national unity against external aggression.

The former envoy said “destroying” known nuclear sites ignored Iran’s capacity to disperse and conceal its program, leaving the West "in a situation where we know less about what they’re doing."

The diplomat reserved sharp criticism for Donald Trump’s erratic policies, revealing how the former president’s "mood shifts constantly" between diplomacy and military escalation.

Trump’s withdrawal from the nuclear deal and subsequent "maximum pressure" campaign failed spectacularly, Malley argued, as Iran responded by massively expanding uranium enrichment.

“That theory of the case—[that maximum pressure would compel Iran to surrender]—we really need to put to rest,” Malley asserted, pointing out that Tehran’s nuclear capabilities expanded significantly after sanctions were reinstated.

Malley characterized the Israeli regime’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s strategy as self-defeating, observing that Israel’s portrayal of Iran as an "existential threat" created a contradiction: “On the one hand, they say that Iran is a fanatical, irrational regime, which could use a nuclear weapon against Israel if it had one. On the other hand, [they say] it’s rational enough that it’s going to give in to pressure, to coercion, to threats. Pick one. They’re not both rational."

He noted Netanyahu felt "caught by his own argument" when the nuclear deal addressed Israel’s stated concerns, forcing him to invent new objections.

The former negotiator highlighted Iran’s historical trauma as key to understanding its defiance, referencing the 1980s Iran-Iraq War where "estimates are up to a million" Iranian deaths shaped the national psyche.

The suspended envoy reserved particular concern for the humanitarian impact, noting civilian casualties from strikes on hospitals and residential areas have fueled anti-Western rage. "When you’re being bombed by another country, you become more nationalist," he observed, predicting the strikes would haunt the region for years through "unpredictable outcomes" and "pent-up humiliation."