TEHRAN (FNA)- The desperate Pentagon regime is unable to afford all of the new weapons it wants to buy and will be forced to choose winners and losers, absent an influx of cash.
According to a new assessment from data and analytics firm Govini, more cash is unlikely, regardless of whether President Trump wins a second term or is defeated by his Democratic challenger Joe Biden. Moreover, they predict the Pentagon will face increased competition for dollars as the United States tries to dig itself out of a recession brought on by the coronavirus pandemic.
This is while the Trump administration has asked Congress to approve a $740.5 billion defense budget for fiscal 2021. The Pentagon’s share of that budget request: $705 billion — much the rest goes to the Energy Department for nuclear weapons projects.
This was all expected. With future funding in question, the Pentagon regime won’t be able to expedite new expensive weapons deals anyways. It won’t be able to invade and occupy independent nations, too.
It’s all the reason why the political class in Washington are reportedly in a hurry to withdraw troops from Germany, Japan and South Korea. US Ambassador to Germany Richard Grennel has tackled US troop cut announcement for Germany, saying it is in keeping with Trump’s position, and that he also wants cuts in Japan and South Korea.
In addressing the issue, it is likely that bankrupt Washington is trying to scare yet more money out of its cash-strapped allies after months of failed negotiations. Trump is always expected to seek more money from them, but is unlikely to get it.
Polls have showed that while politicians are somewhat split, voters in Japan, South Korea and Germany much prefer a US pullout to more military spending. Their governments also oppose massive new demands from the US.
On the other end of the equation, there is also a very good reason why Trump repeatedly says US troops won’t stay in Syria forever. According to bankrupt Washington, for every one of the US soldiers officially counted injured casualties in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, the government has to spend some $2 million in long-term medical cost.
The $2 million per casualty figure does serve as a stark reminder of how the US and its veterans will be suffering if official Washington makes the choice to keep its foreign military bases running or has new boots on the ground in the Middle East.
Some might say Saudi Arabia will pay for America’s endless war here, but because of falling oil prices and demand, even that autocratic regime is also broke, unable to fund its costly war against Yemen, much less defeat the coronavirus outbreak. Saudi Arabia is bankrupt and has no petro-dollar cash left to pay the bill for American troops or injured veterans in long-term medical cost.
History tells us that financial commitment to a war does not end with troop withdrawal or end of the war. Soldiers might be leaving, but they are taking with them injuries that will take years to treat. In many cases, they will be dealing with them for the rest of their lives. And they would need cash from a government that couldn’t even handle the coronavirus pandemic properly.
At any rate, America’s wars on Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Yemen – which were based on lies and paid for by American taxpayers and Saudi cash - have ended with a beaten and bankrupt America. No wonder the political class in Washington cannot afford to keep its military bases running in Europe or Far East, or buy new weaponry.
The big picture remains the same: Total defeat and bankruptcy for war-party Washington. The officials at the department of Pentagon see it – they have learned a lesson or two from their excessive wars. The Trump administration officials and their friends in Europe and Far East also see it. The question is whether Saudi Arabia and its bankrupt club (the UAE, Kuwait and Bahrain) can see it as well, especially in Yemen and Syria.
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