Following the joint US-British-French attack on Syria last month, opposition is hardening in Tehran against any form of negotiation with the West over Iran's ballistic missile program. Accompanying this trend is the rare unity among political elites in a climate of division. The shared belief underlying this attitude is that the West is seeking to hold talks with Iran over its missile program in order to undermine the country's defense capabilities and make it vulnerable to future attack.

In the early hours of April 14, US President Donald Trump joined forces with Britain and France to launch over 100 missiles at three Syrian targets, which they claimed to be chemical weapons sites. The move marked Trump's second military action against the Syrian government since taking office. Although the attacks were not as severe as anticipated by many observers, they were sufficient to reinforce Iran's resolve to not negotiate with the West over its missile capabilities.

Prior to the missile strikes, there were differing opinions in Tehran about the potential measures Trump might take in Syria. Within a few hours after the attack, however, a unified voice came out of Tehran: Various political groups all condemned what they described as a lack of respect for the boundaries of an internationally recognized government. This wave of condemnation was Iran's natural response to an attack on a friendly country.

After the condemnation came a deeper analysis of the Western military action in Syria. Mehdi Mohammadi, a leading conservative theoretician who has opposed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action from the get go, tweeted on April 14, "It is interesting how with their [current] missile game in Syria, in two weeks, they plan to propose negotiating with Iran over its missile program."