I like the Americans! I like them for their perseverance and desire to make a profit, no matter what. What are the principles, what is the truth, what is the moral, if there is an opportunity to get an extra dollar? Profit is not just an American icon; it is the meaning of a normal American's life. Let the world collapse, let everything perish around, but if there is an opportunity to make a profit, then only this will be the main thing. Any tragedy, if captured on video, will make a profit. That is why there are so many videos of murders and so few people who are trying to help the victim.
I understand that some readers now have a cognitive dissonance from what they read. Why would I suddenly change my attitude towards a probable "ally" of Russia in the fight against … With whom we will fight together, it does not matter. There is a universal enemy - terrorism. So we will fight terrorism. Periodically calling each other sponsors of terrorism, terrorist states and other dissonant, but terrible words for the layman. Let's fight together for all the good against all the bad.
What is the relationship between the American desire for profit everywhere and our cooperation in the struggle for all good? The connection is direct. From the point of view of the United States, we must fight for this best, using exclusively American weapons. Simply because American is always the best. For any overseas citizen, this is an axiom. And in Europe, the majority of politicians are convinced of this. No wonder they were taught at American universities.
And everything would be fine if not for the "nasty" Russia and China. Can you imagine the meanness of the Chinese and Russians, who practically single-handedly use such sales markets? How many obsolete types of weapons could be sold to Russia … And to China … Just say that this is the latest weapon and sell it. Here it is, profit! Here it is, the American dream! But Asian “savages” prefer to use homemade “clubs” and “bows”.
But the main thing is not that the Chinese and Russians are using their own weapons. The main thing is that these weapons are now used in real combat operations. It is difficult to talk about the plywood fighters of Russia, when valiant US pilots flee from these airplanes on ultra-modern aircraft. And it is difficult to talk about the advantages of the Tomahawks after the attack by the Calibers of the positions of the terrorists in Syria.
The Americans had to use blackmail for profit. Remember the famous Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act? The United States is the richest country, and it can give those who cooperate with Russia and China a fun life. Washington will impose such sanctions that the economies of Russia and China will simply collapse!
Remember how Trump got started in 2017? A few months after his inauguration, the United States sold F-16 fighters to Bahrain. Remember the deal that Barack Obama held back due to human rights violations? The president did not dare "not to notice" the public beheading and stoning of people in the squares. And Trump decided … What morality, what obligations, what international laws? Profit!
And another "deal of the century" - a huge military contract with Saudi Arabia, which was concluded almost immediately after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi? Here the Americans did not even give a damn about their own laws. Remember the state of emergency that Donald Trump declared in order to bypass American law and get the deal past Congress? It was.
It was very interesting to watch how events develop. Arms exports under Trump have grown by one and a half times. Small countries bought weapons and received some kind of economic benefits for this. Europe calmed down and resignedly fulfilled the requirements of the United States. But … The war in Syria revealed more and more advantages of Russian weapons. Moreover, some systems simply do not have American counterparts!
How gracefully Erdogan spat in the face of the Americans when he began purchasing Russian weapons. Do you remember Comrade Sukhov's catchphrase: "The East is a delicate matter"? Eastern people react painfully to pressure from outside. And Erdogan was directly dictated the terms. The answer was not long in coming.
For the countries of the former socialist bloc, American weapons pose a different problem. Soviet weapons are still in service there. The personnel know how to work with this particular weapon. Accordingly, the termination of purchases from Russia will require unbearable costs for the re-equipment and retraining of soldiers and officers.
Russia also added fuel to the fire. Remember the decree of the Russian government to simplify the re-export of Russian weapons? There is a wonderful loophole for buyers. After the resale of weapons to a third country, the end buyer does not need to present to the Russian Federation a certificate stating that he undertakes not to sell it further without the consent of Russia. Such a document is now transferred to the direct seller. The same one simply notifies us about it.
The world is changing today. Riots shake the United States. Those who for many years had been obedient slaves of the "beacon of democracy" suddenly remembered their interests. The world's cauldron is boiling. Bubbles burst here and there. And the months-long fight against the coronavirus contributes to the emergence of "fatigue" of peoples. Fatigue is reflected in the radicalization of the population of many countries.
This also applies to the arms market. The competition between the United States, China and Russia has led to the fact that buyers are no longer afraid. For two years at least, the Americans have been putting pressure on the Indians to buy Russian S-400s. The whole range of methods was used. All the sticks and gingerbread. But the result came out with a minus sign.
India today is not a supernumerary third world country. This is a powerful and wealthy state. The economic sanctions that the Americans rely on are not terrible for India today. The Indian military itself is putting pressure on arms dealers quite harshly. Remember how many weapons manufacturers from different countries are assembled in India.
The struggle in the global arms market is flaring up with renewed vigor. Profit is not just an American fix now. Industry, science, the entire social policy of the state is quite dependent on the defense industry. And the cost of the final product in this area brings very serious dividends.
And speaking about the prospects, for some reason I recalled one conversation that, I am sure, many have heard, but did not pay special attention to it. I mean the dialogue between Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin at MAKS in front of the Su-57:
- Is it Su-57? Is he already flying?
- Flies.
- Can you buy it?
- You can buy.
