Image source: topwar.ru
In 20 years, sales of small arms in the United States have tripled. This is reported by the French Le Figaro, referring to the report of the US Department of Justice. In turn, the report of the US health authorities states that such a large number of weapons in the hands of citizens led to the fact that the death from bullets among Americans in 2020 reached "historic proportions." The authorities consider the consequences of the COVID-19 epidemic and the growth of poverty to be the probable cause of the increase in homicides and suicides.
In total, over the past 20 years, American arms companies have supplied more than 139 million weapons to the market, of which 11.3 million in 2020. During the same time, the United States additionally imported another 71 million weapons, and exported almost ten times less, according to a government study.
The growth rate of the arms industry in America has reached unprecedented proportions, the newspaper writes. In 2000, there were 2,222 enterprises engaged in the manufacture of small arms in the country. In 2020, there were already 16,963 such companies. 3.9 million weapons went on sale annually in 2020, and by the end of 2020 this figure reached 11.3 million units.
At the same time, the market for so-called "ghost weapons" is growing. These are pistols and rifles, which are made in an artisanal way at home. To do this, enterprising Americans buy components on the cheap via the Internet or even make them on 3D printers. Unlike factory-made firearms, such firearms do not have a serial number, and their purchase does not require a license to carry weapons, certificates of no criminal record and mental condition. Statistics on the turnover of such weapons are also difficult, but even the figures on the seized "ghost pistols" are impressive: in 216, the police seized 1,758 units of such weapons, and in 2021 already 19,344 units.
Le Figaro specifically notes that the statistics of the Ministry of Justice were published after the next outbreaks of violence and two shootings in Buffalo and Los Angeles. American officials are trying to explain the increase in crimes involving small arms by the consequences of the COVID-19 epidemic and the growing poverty of marginal segments of the population. According to statistics from the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control, 19,350 homicides were registered in the United States in 2020, which is almost 35% more than in 2019, and 24,245 suicides. The murder rate was 6.1 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2020, which is a record for the last 25 years.
