San Diego expert weighs in on U.S. involvement in Iran

As the U.S. and Iran target each other with missile strikes, uncertainty grows in San Diego and across the country about the economic and regional impacts the conflict will have here at home in the coming weeks.

“I think the immediate picture is going to see increasing instability within Iran and across the middle East and a likelihood of increasing military force being used,” Darren Kew, Dean of Kroc School of Peace Studies at USD said.

Kew said what started as an attempt from the Trump Administration to pressure Iran into a nuclear negotiation has quickly turned into a mission to topple the country’s regime.

An Iranian government, Kew said, is still very much alive, though its top leader has been killed.

He said it appears the United States and Israel are pushing strongly to topple what remains of it.

“I think there’s a lot a stake for us here in San Diego,” Kew said.

Kew said a dragged-out conflict could mean longer deployments for San Diego servicemembers.

Kew said it’s unclear how long the U.S. is willing to stay involved, adding that the possibility of the conflict ending quickly seems less likely.

“We haven’t gotten a lot of information from the president on this so far, so I would expect some sort of speech or conversation of this effect is coming forward,” Kew said.