FRED KAPLAN: US - Europe military-industrial complexes in conflict
America’s European
allies are finally spending more on defense, but the Trump administration is
raising hell about it because some of the allies want to spend the money on
weapons made in their own countries. The irony is immense.
Throughout his presidency, and even before, Trump has been browbeating the NATO
allies to boost their defense budgets, even threatening to leave the alliance
if they didn’t pony up. Now that they’re doing so in a politically viable
way—by investing in their own companies—top U.S. officials are complaining.
It would be funny if
it weren’t so damaging. The whole episode bolsters suspicions that the United
States is interested more in enriching its own military-industrial complex than
in improving the common defense. As a result, trans-Atlantic tensions, which
Trump has done much to brew, will likely thicken. The case for higher European
defense budgets will lose legitimacy if it comes to be seen as a mere appendage
to Trump’s “America First” campaign... read more:
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2019/06/europe-military-industrial-complex-nato-trump.html