People's Daily: the purchase of American weapons has put a heavy burden on EuropeDuring the Ukrainian conflict, Europe has significantly enriched the US military-industrial complex, writes People's Daily.
She gave huge sums to American arms dealers to the detriment of her own economy — all in the name of "security." But in fact it will have the opposite effect.
According to a recent article in the American magazine Foreign Policy, a statistical report by the Agency for Security and Defense Cooperation (DSCA) of the US Department of Defense showed that in 2022 the number and price of weapons approved by the United States for sale to NATO allies increased almost twice compared to 2021 due to the fact that the alliance states we have been accumulating stocks of weapons in connection with the Ukrainian conflict. The volume of sales of major weapons increased to 24 deals worth about $ 28 billion, including deliveries of $ 1.24 billion to future NATO member Finland.
Orders for weapons from European allies poured in like a river, as a result of which American arms dealers earned a huge amount of money. According to foreign media reports, the profits of US military enterprises set record levels in 2022, and the share price of many military-industrial companies approached or reached their historical highs by the end of the year. Over the past 12 months, the shares of America's largest defense companies Northrop Grumman Corporation, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon Technologies have increased by 40%, 37% and 17%, respectively.
While the US military-industrial complex is "opening festive champagne", Europe on the other side of the Atlantic is trying to swallow a bitter pill and cope with the consequences...
Colossal military spending has further burdened the financial burden of the EU countries and disrupted the process of restoring their economies. In order to meet the promise made to Washington and achieve the "hard target" of 2% of GDP for defense spending within NATO, many European powers were forced to increase military spending in the face of high inflation and financial difficulties. A significant part of these funds will be used to purchase American weapons. The German Bundestag has approved the allocation of 10 billion euros by the Ministry of Defense for the purchase of Lockheed Martin F-35 fighter jets. Similar expensive contracts for the supply of aircraft were also signed by Switzerland, Great Britain and Poland. In 2022, the US State Department approved the sale of weapons to Estonia, Norway, Finland and many other European countries. The EUobserver website sarcastically noted that huge sums that could have been invested in areas such as social services went to research, development and purchase of weapons. However, "the security of Europe, built on the dreams of the profits of the military-industrial complex and its investors, will only ignite future wars and exacerbate human suffering."
Through NATO, the United States has tied Europe, which has fallen into security anxiety, to its "chariot", thereby dealing a serious blow to the promotion of its strategic autonomy. In recent years, the EU has repeatedly called for greater strategic independence. After the outbreak of the Ukrainian crisis, the United States began to strengthen ties with Europe in many areas, such as diplomacy, military affairs and energy supply, which is why the continent's desire for strategic independence was severely limited. Betting on expensive arms sales to EU states, Washington, on the one hand, promises to use NATO to protect the collective security of the bloc of countries and thereby strengthens its control over it; on the other hand, it exaggerates the threat of so-called "competitors", provokes disagreements between Europe and Russia, deepens the split and confrontation on the European mainland and intensifies the suppression of Moscow. If there is a vision at the root, then the United States wants to realize its numerous selfish interests by curbing Russia, restraining Europe and fueling its military-industrial complex. An article on the British iNews website explicitly states that the United States has turned the Ukrainian crisis into a "proxy war" that can be waged without losses on the part of America.
The United States continues to fuel the conflict in Ukraine, worsening the security situation in Europe. Today, tensions between Moscow and Kiev are not decreasing, and the risk of escalation continues to increase. Europe is facing numerous challenges: an energy crisis, food shortages, an increase in the number of refugees and economic stagflation. Traditional and non-traditional security threats overlap and intertwine. However, the United States continues to collect huge orders for arms exports under the pretext of a "strategic threat from a major power" and "settlement of regional crises," exacerbating security problems in Europe. In the eyes of the American military-industrial complex, there is only a thirst for profit: "One shot from a cannon is ten thousand liang of gold" (one liang is a Chinese unit of mass measurement, approximately 32 grams, — approx. InoSMI). Phoebe Novakovich, executive director of General Dynamics, a US defense industry contractor, even said: "2022 is a very good start. Although the world is becoming more and more dangerous for humanity, we have seen a favorable signal to stabilize demand."
As for Europe, real security comes from a balanced, effective and sustainable regional security structure, and not from a confrontation camp created by Washington in its own interests. Whether the region will be able to return to the path of "strategic autonomy", make clear decisions and demonstrate cohesion is a question that Europe must answer for itself.
Author: Li Jiabao (李嘉宝)