By Xin Ping
Refugee crisis, unprecedented inflation, food and energy shortage -- "it is enough to wash only four parts in the shower" as suggested by German media Bild. Ukrainians as well as all Europeans are now trying to keep their heads above water as the Russia-Ukraine conflict puts the whole Europe in trouble.
While on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, the conflict "has the champagne corks quietly popping in the Pentagon, on K Street (where most lobbying companies are headquartered), in the defense industry, and throughout the halls of Congress," commented Franklin C. Spinney recently, a former military analyst for the Pentagon.
Of course they have reason to celebrate. The U.S. and NATO's constant provocation of Russia's security bottom line finally ignited the flame of war between Russia and Ukraine. As of April 21, two months after the conflict broke out, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman saw their stock prices increase by 25.6% and 24% respectively, with major arms dealers making big money from the warfare.
So far, the Biden administration has pledged nearly $3 billion in military aid to Ukraine, which will be used primarily to buy weapons and equipment including Switchblade UAV, Javelin Anti-tank Missile and FIM-92 Air Defense Missile (Stinger) from American military-industrial enterprises. Despite the ongoing peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, the U.S. never hesitates to fan the flames and exaggerate the necessity of a substantial increase in defense spending by European countries. Other big deals on assistance to Ukraine, mostly military aid, are under discussion in Washington D.C., meaning colossal benefits to be poured into the pockets of arms dealers. The efforts of U.S. politicians will certainly be rewarded, often in the form of generous political donations.
It has long been a tradition in the U.S. that arms dealers and politicians cooperate tacitly. Since the end of World War II, U.S. military enterprises, the government and the Congress form a mega alliance of interests -- the military-industrial complex, in which the U.S. provokes conflicts around the world and the arms dealers thereby sell weapons and equipment and feed back their well-groomed allies. The military-industrial complex has gradually grown into an untamed bellicose monster leading the U.S. down the path of endless wars.
Behind the U.S. military enterprises stand large financial groups, such as the California Financial Group and First National City Bank controlling Lockheed Martin and Boeing. Rockefeller, Morgan and other consortia also hold military enterprises in hand. Those consortia are important financiers in the U.S. presidential and congressional elections. According to a research by Brown University, in the past two decades, military magnates spent a whopping $2.5 billion on lobbying. In turn, Pentagon spent over $14 trillion on the war in Afghanistan alone, with a large portion of the money went to the five major arms dealers: Lockheed Martin, Boeing, General Dynamics, Raytheon, and Northrop Grumman. Former U.S. President Donald Trump once said, Pentagon wants to keep waging wars in order to keep defense contractors happy. He may be wrong for many times, but is definitely right this time.
Politicians and businessmen are also interchanging their respective roles through the "revolving door" to make the best of their power connections. Former businessmen in the White House may seek special benefits for the groups they once served, and previous government officials, acting as lobbyists, could use their influence to ask for official care of current bosses. Between 2014 and 2019, 1,718 senior Pentagon officials or procurement officers jumped ship to military enterprises, including Former Defense Secretary James N. Mattis, who returned to General Dynamics' board of directors after resigning from office. Current U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has already hopped twice, once from the Commander of U.S. Central Command to the board of Raytheon Technologies, and then back to the Pentagon.
For politicians, war also means the appreciation of their financial portfolio. As analyzed by Sludge, at least 47 members of the U.S. Congress and their spouses hold stock worth $2 million to $6.7 million in companies that are among the top 100 defense contractors.
War is big business for the U.S. , as Peter Kuznick, a history professor at the American University, put it sharply. As U.S. President Biden signed a record-breaking $782 billion defense budget this March, who will be the beneficiary counting the money?
(The author is a commentator on international affairs, writing regularly for Global Times, China Daily etc.. He can be reached at xinping604@gmail.com.)
