By Liu Tao

刘涛

Data released by the US State Department on January 25 showed that US arms sales to other countries and regions had a year-over-year increase of nearly 50 percent in Fiscal Year 2022. One important reason is the escalation of the Ukraine crisis. Many analysts pointed out that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine is a tragedy for the world, but American arms dealers have made big fortune out of this crisis.

美国国务院1月25日公布的数据显示，2022财年美国对其他国家和地区的武器销售额较上一财年激增近5成，一个重要原因是乌克兰危机升级。对此，很多分析指出，俄乌冲突对世界来说是一场悲剧，但美国军火商却因此大发战争财。

In February last year, the US immediately provided Ukraine with $350 million worth of military aid after the Russian-Ukrainian conflict broke out. Only one month later, the US announced that it would provide Ukraine with weapons, ammunition, and other forms of security aid worth $800 million. The US Department of Defense's recently updated list of military aid packages to Ukraine shows that since February last year, the total US military aid to Ukraine has exceeded $27.1 billion. In addition, with the excuse of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 was successfully passed in Congress. According to this act, US defense spending in Fiscal Year 2023 will reach an unprecedented $857.9 billion. Some analysts believe that at least one-third of this sky-high military expenditure will flow into the pockets of arms dealers and US military companies.

去年2月，俄乌冲突爆发后，美国立即向乌提供3.5亿美元的军事援助。仅一个月后，美国又宣布向乌提供价值8亿美元的武器、弹药和其他形式安全援助。美国国防部最近更新的对乌克兰军事援助清单显示，自去年2月至今，美国对乌军事援助总额已超过271亿美元。此外，因为有了俄乌冲突这个借口，美国2023财年国防授权法案在国会顺利通过。根据这一法案，2023财年美国防经费将达到史无前例的8579亿美元。有分析认为，这一天价军费中至少三分之一会流进军火商口袋里，让美国军工企业赚得盆满钵满。

In the past year, as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine continued to escalate, the US successfully sold anxiety to Europe and NATO member states. As a result, European countries have adjusted their defense policies and increased purchases of US-made weapons. According to statistics, European countries have committed to purchase weapons and equipment worth about $230 billion since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The German Bundestag has approved the Ministry of Defense to spend 10 billion euros to purchase US-made F-35 fighter jets, and Poland has decided to purchase MQ-9 Reaper drones from the US. According to data released by the US State Department, the total value of direct sales of arms and military equipment by US defense contractors to other countries and regions in Fiscal Year 2022 is about $153.7 billion, a 48.6 percent increase from the $103.4 billion in the previous fiscal year.

过去一年，随着俄乌冲突不断升级，美国向欧洲及北约成员国成功贩卖焦虑，欧洲国家纷纷调整防务政策，加紧采购美制武器。据统计，自俄乌冲突爆发以来，欧盟国家已承诺购买价值约2300亿美元的武器装备。德国议会已批准国防部花费100亿欧元采购美制F-35战机，波兰决定从美国购买MQ-9“死神”无人机。美国国务院公布的数据显示，2022财年美国国防承包商直接向其他国家和地区出售的武器和军事装备授权总价值约为1537亿美元，较上一财年的1034亿美元飙升了48.6%。

For a long time, the military-industrial complex formed by the US military, arms dealers, and politicians has been keen to create conflicts, escalate conflicts, and provoke wars, thereby grabbing huge wealth and political interests. Some think tanks and media outlets in the US often join hands with the military-industrial complex to shape war narratives, incite and guide public opinion. In recent decades, the US has participated in or launched many wars, intervened in a series of armed conflicts by supporting agents and providing weapons and ammunition. Geopolitical tensions have become a money printing machine for the US military-industrial complex.

一直以来，由美国军方、军火商及政客捆绑形成的“军工复合体”热衷于制造冲突、升级矛盾、挑起战争，从而攫取巨额财富和政治利益。美国一些智库和媒体也经常同“军工复合体”一唱一和、同流合污，来塑造战争叙事、煽动并引导舆论。近几十年，美国不仅先后参与或发动了多场战争，还通过扶植代理人、提供武器弹药等方式介入一系列武装冲突，地缘政治紧张局势成为美“军工复合体”的印钞机。

Franklin Spinney, who has worked in the Office of the Secretary of Defense for many years, believes that the US military-industrial complex is responsible for the Russia-Ukraine conflict, because the pursuit of interests of the military-industrial complex and its lobbying activities have led to NATO's repeated violations of the promise of "no more eastward expansion"after the Cold War. The interests of the US military-industrial complex determine that the US needs enemies, so it always has an incentive to search for new enemies around the world.

曾在美国国防部长办公室工作多年的富兰克林•斯平尼 认为，美国“军工复合体”应对俄乌冲突爆发负责，因为“军工复合体”的利益追逐及其游说活动导致冷战后北约一再违反不再东扩的承诺。美国“军工复合体”的利益决定美国需要敌人，因此它总有动力在全球寻找新的敌人。

In 2022, as the conflict between Russia and Ukraine continued to escalate, the stock prices of major US military companies rose sharply. Against the backdrop of a 10 percent drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Index as a whole, US military industry company Northrop Grumman's stock price soared by nearly 40 percent and Lockheed Martin's stock price rose by more than 30 percent.

2022年，随着俄乌冲突持续升级，美主要军工企业股价大幅上涨，在道琼斯工业指数整体下跌10%的背景下，美军工企业诺思罗普-格鲁曼公司股价猛涨近40%，洛克希德•马丁公司股价则上涨超过30%，逆市创造了“丰收年”。

US arms business made big fortune for self-interests but have intensified regional conflicts and further aggravated the regional humanitarian crisis. Today, a large number of weapons continue to flow into Ukraine, but they cannot be effectively supervised. Catherine De Bolle, Executive Director of Europol, once said that arms sent to Ukraine from the West could end up in the hands of gangs and then on to other countries on the continent. The irresponsible actions of the US are like opening Pandora's Box, which will lead to unpredictable consequences.

为一己私利，美国的军火生意肥了自己的腰包，却加剧了地区冲突，使地区人道主义危机进一步恶化。如今，数量庞大的武器源源不断流入乌克兰，却无法被有效监管。欧洲刑警组织总干事凯瑟琳•德博勒 曾表示，西方输送给乌克兰的武器可能落入犯罪团伙手中，继而流向欧洲大陆其他国家。美国不负责任的做法，就像打开了一个个潘多拉魔盒，将引发难以预测的后果。