A new leaked memo from the White House indicates that the Trump administration wants to vastly change the way the US provides weapons the countries around the world.
Upon the completion of the first $110 billion of a $350 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia, Trump spoke in Riyadh hailing the transaction as much for its financial benefits to America as for its supposed assistance to Saudi Arabia.
According to the new memo, it would appear that Trump seeks to extend this style of commerce even to poorer countries who cannot deliver the cash that the oil rich Wahhabi Kingdom is able to procure without hesitation.
Under Barack Obama’s administration, the US gave so-called ‘weapons grants’ to many countries throughout the world. This is essentially a convoluted way of giving away free Dollars so long as the Dollars are then used to buy US made weapons.
Donald Trump being a businessman has realised that this is bad for the US economy and has instead offered to become a credit agency for countries, offering mass loans rather than ‘gifts’ (aka grants) in order for them to purchase expensive US made weapons.
Some of the countries on the list include, Tunisia, Lebanon, Vietnam and Philippines whose President Rodrigo Duterte is all ready looking to move closer to both China and Russia.
The US State Department criticised this move on ideological grounds, saying, somewhat accurately that rather than being in debt to the US, such countries would simply opt to purchase cheaper and in many cases more durable weapons form Russia and China.
Why though should the US continually give away money, money which is simply used to weaponize potential and existing conflict zones? If weapons are to be sold, let other nations put it on the national credit card.
Many have suggested that such a move could effect one of the most impoverished and virtually bankrupt nations that Obama had given generous grants to; Ukraine. The Trump administration has all ready cut funding for the Ukrainian regime from $600 million under Obama to $350 million. Some suggest this figure could become lower as early as next year.
Donald Trump has no ethical qualms with seeing weapons to nations who can afford it, but like any good businessman, he doesn’t seem to like freeloaders.
In this sense Russia is de-facto sympathetic in the matter of Kiev.
For decades, a poor and corrupt Ukrainian state freeloaded off of cheap Russian gas and other Russian industrial goods, refusing to pay the market price and always asking for further discounts. Since the illegal coup of 2014, Kiev has been freeloading off of the Obama administration whose ideologically minted Dollars generously flowed into Ukraine, much of it lining the pockets of post-coup officials who are vastly more corrupt than the still corrupt pre-coup officials were.
Donald Trump wants to do business, the Ukrainian regime wants to be spoon freeload. An impasse will undoubtedly soon be reached.
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