Arms sales dropping due to pandemic

U.S. arms sales are suffering due to the COVID-19 pandemic which has left allies with less money to spend on weapons, Defense News reports.

The United States made $55 billion in foreign military sales in fiscal year 2019, but observers are worried that might drop in the coming year because of declining oil prices and increasing priority on domestic production by allies.

“I think the trends are a bit worrisome,” Roman Schweizer, managing editor of Cowen Washington Research Group, said during a Defense One event, the news agency reported. 

Also,  President Donald Trump had been at odds with Western European leaders, according to the news agency. However, allies closer to Russia have been buying arms from the United States more heavily.

Tensions with Russia and China will probably drive up demand, the news agency reported. So far this year, China has been raising defense spending by 6.6%, the story said.

“The growth rate may have slowed, but the fact the budget increased is still a significant indication of the focus and prioritization that the [Chinese Communist] Party puts on modernization plans and national security interests,” said Meia Nouwens, an expert on Chinese military affairs with the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Edward Ferguson, a former British ambassador who now serves as minister counselor for defense at the U.K. embassy, said NATO is seeing allies proliferating instead of reducing.

 “Notwithstanding the additional demands on treasuries and exchequers is the fundamental shifts in technologies we’re seeing and [the] need to invest in that, and the increasingly complex strategic environment, whether it’s Russia or China," Ferguson said, the news agency reported.