Skip to main content

Russian war in Ukraine 'helps' US military-industrial complex amass huge profits

By Fr Cedric Prakash SJ* 

The world is at war once again! The Russian invasion of Ukraine, now in its second week, continues unabated, with the fear of going nuclear! Several of the world’s democracies are with Ukraine; some big names, like China, are with Russia. India is a fence-sitter (like some others) -- who blow hot and blow cold, as per their convenience and petty selfish interests. There are those who sit on the side-lines waiting for another global tragedy to unfold -- thinking that they will not be affected!
The industrial-military complex, mainly US- based, are all excited. Finally, their ‘bloody’ profits show a huge upward surge! Mainstream media, all over the world, takes sides. Social media, however, is vociferous in the condemnation of this war: with memes, posters, quotes, videos and what-not doing the rounds!
It has been bloody so far – millions are affected; many are killed, many more are wounded; mind-boggling numbers have had to flee from what they once called ‘home’. Yes, it is a terrible war – and this war must stop now! All wars are wrong!
More than 128 years after it was first premiered on April 21, 1894, ‘Arms and the Man’, written by the celebrated Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw, is a comedy which needs re-visiting, in the context of the war and violence which has engulfed our world today. ‘Arms and the Man’, though a humorous play, highlights the futility of war and simultaneously exposes the hypocrisies of human nature.
Shaw situated the play in the Serbo-Bulgarian war of 1885, with a Swiss mercenary soldier Captain Bluntschli as the hero. The play dances around two romantic encounters, but it is ultimately Bluntschli’s hitting remarks about war and soldiers “nine soldiers out of ten are born fools” and “I use my ammunition pouches to carry chocolates and not cartridges for my pistol” -- that hold sway. Writing 50 years later well-known British novelist George Orwell wrote that “the moral of the play that war should be abhorred -- for it is not a wonderful, romantic -- needs to be told!”
Prophetic indeed! The only difference today is that both ‘arms and ‘men’ are no longer subjects of a comedy on stage- but a terrible tragedy that unfolds daily in the lives of millions of ordinary people as it is doing today in Ukraine! Playing stellar roles in this tragedy are the ‘arms and ammunition’ industry and the ‘men’ (the mercenaries) who control and profit from an industry that has never had it as good as it is today.
Some years later in 1899, the magnum opus ‘War and Peace’ of the renowned Russian writer Leo Tolstoy was published in English (he wrote it in 1869). This massive work is philosophical and spiritual – but also deals with real war. Tolstoy highlights the situation of those affected by war and why peace is a non-negotiable for all! More than one hundred and fifty years later, this work is still relevant with many useful lessons! But who cares?
Several nations (at the cost of much-needed social expenditure) spend an impressive quantum of money on their defence militaries. From tanks, aircraft carriers, personnel costs and other pieces of equipment, running an organised armed force is expensive. While the United States of America still outspends every other country in the world by a large margin, other countries have started to spend more money on their military expenditure as well.
Established in 1966, The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) is a global and highly respected independent think tank ‘dedicated to research into conflict, armaments, arms control and disarmament.’ SIPRI’s annual ‘Yearbook’ and the slew of well-researched documents produced by it provide one with the naked truth of the why of today’s wars and how certain segments of society literally thrive from the wages of war.
The last annual report ‘SIPRI Military Expenditure Database’ was published in end-April 2021. As per 2021 report, the top five biggest spenders in 2020 were the United States ($778 billion), China ($252 billion), India ($72.9 billion), Russia ($61.7 billion) and the United Kingdom ($59.2 billion).
These five nations together accounted for 62 per cent of global military expenditure. Globally, the military spending in 2020 rose to $1981 billion. This value is an increase of 2.6 per cent in real terms as compared to 2019. India has the ignominy of continuing to be the third biggest military spender in the world in 2020, according to the latest data from SIPRI.
This is a crying shame and a scandal of the highest proportion for a country which today has millions of people living on or below the poverty; where millions go to bed without a square meal, have no access to primary health care or elementary education, leave alone safe drinking water or a house of their own.
Today billions are allocated in the production of weapons, particularly on weapons of mass destruction. Spending patterns in India and in most countries need to change in order to eradicate poverty, which is a major threat to world peace and human life!
From the earliest days of his pontificate Pope Francis has taken on the arms trade referring to it as the ‘industry of death’. On September 23, 2015, addressing the US Congress, he did not mince words saying:
“Why are deadly weapons being sold to those who plan to inflict untold suffering on individuals and society? Sadly, the answer, as we all know, is simply for money: money that is drenched in blood, often innocent blood. In the face of this shameful and culpable silence, it is our duty to confront the problem and to stop the arms trade.”
On April 16, 2016, from the Greek island of Lesbos Pope Francis challenged those who control the lives and destinies of others saying:
“It is necessary, above all, to build peace where war has brought destruction and death, and to stop this scourge from spreading. To do this, resolute efforts must be made to counter the arms trade and arms trafficking, and the often-hidden machinations associated with them; those who carry out acts of hatred and violence must be denied all means of support.”
A few months ago, on December 5, 2021 on his second visit to Lesbos – he voiced similar sentiments referring to the plight of the refugees and the displaced as “the shipwreck of civilization”!
When ‘war’ is good business, no one would like to take on the arms industry. It is common knowledge that whether in the yesteryears of the previous governments or the one of today, ‘kickbacks’ is what those in power look forward to. Corruption is mainstreamed in this industry (as we have seen in the Raffaele deal). It is not a state ‘secret’ that the arms trade has been bank- rolling powerful politicians from across the political divide.
Mercenaries play an important role in the trade. These are men anointed and protected by their governments who have no qualms in selling the most sophisticated weaponry to the devil. No one raises the sensitive issue of how much of the deadly weapons used by the ISIS have been manufactured by western nations.
The toy industry is another booming one, with guns, violent video games and other imitations of war weaponry topping the list. Parents do not think twice about gifting such ‘toys’ to their little son – for his birthday or first communion and even on Christmas! The long-term impact is never considered.
So naturally everybody is ‘shocked’ when a teenager takes a real gun and mows down his fellow-students and teachers! Peace and nonviolence are fundamental to a society in which human rights flourish. 
The toy industry is booming, with guns, violent video games and other imitations of war weaponry topping the list
In many parts of the world, this will never take place unless there is a political will to address the arms trade and close down the industry. Until such time ‘Arms and the Man’ in its new avatar continue, with the audience yelling ‘this war is terrible!’ without courageously tackling head-on those who control the puppets!
In his Encyclical ‘Fratelli Tutti’ Pope Francis, keeps a sizeable section of why we should say ‘NO’ to war! He emphatically states:
“Every war leaves our world worse than it was before. War is a failure of politics and of humanity, a shameful capitulation, a stinging defeat before the forces of evil. Let us not remain mired in theoretical discussions, but touch the wounded flesh of the victims. Let us look once more at all those civilians whose killing was considered ‘collateral damage'. Let us ask the victims themselves.
“Let us think of the refugees and displaced, those who suffered the effects of atomic radiation or chemical attacks, the mothers who lost their children, and the boys and girls maimed or deprived of their childhood. Let us hear the true stories of these victims of violence, look at reality through their eyes, and listen with an open heart to the stories they tell. In this way, we will be able to grasp the abyss of evil at the heart of war.
“Nor will it trouble us to be deemed naive for choosing peace … With the money spent on weapons and other military expenditures, let us establish a global fund. that can finally put an end to hunger and favour development in the most impoverished countries, so that their citizens will not resort to violent or illusory solutions, or have to leave their countries in order to seek a more dignified life”.

But is anybody listening?
Pope Francis, in keeping with Church teaching (particularly since Vatican II) has consistently emphasised that there is nothing like a ‘just’ war. All wars are wrong!
“We can no longer think of war as a solution, because its risks will probably always be greater than its supposed benefits. In view of this, it is very difficult nowadays to invoke the rational criteria elaborated in earlier centuries to speak of the possibility of a ‘just war.’”
The current war is bound to have severe repercussions all over the world. The people who will be most affected will be ordinary citizens! Nothing will happen to the war-mongers, the elite, the rich and powerful! The poor and the vulnerable always pay the wages of war!
We see how thousands of Indian students studying in Ukraine are so badly affected by this war! Many of them are still struggling to return home to India! The Indian government has done very little to expedite their evacuation and has received much flak from everywhere!
There is so much on social media which speak of the horrors and futility of war. Among them, “We spend billions of dollars to find life on other planets… and trillions of dollars killing the life on this one” and as one definition of war (apparently by one Erich Hartman) says, “war is a place where young people who don’t know each other and don’t hate each other, kill each other, by the decision of old people who know each other and hate each other, but don’t kill each other!”
World leaders who are blood-thirsty for war, have a lust for power and profits, for subjugation of others and the annihilation of our world are certainly not listening! At this juncture it would be best for them to isolate themselves, go into seclusion and read or see ‘War and Peace’ and ‘Arms and the Man’. It would certainly do them and humans everywhere a world of good and hopefully stop this war now. All wars are wrong!
---
*Human rights, reconciliation & peace activist/writer

Comments

TRENDING

Wave of disappearances sparks human rights fears for activists in Delhi

By Harsh Thakor*  A philosophy student from Zakir Hussain College, Delhi University, and an activist associated with Nazariya magazine, Rudra, has been reported missing since the morning of July 19, 2025. This disappearance adds to a growing concern among human rights advocates regarding the escalating number of detentions and disappearances of activists in Delhi.

Aggressive mining operations: With 70% of Maharashtra’s forest cover, Gadchiroli is on brink of environmental collapse

By  Raj Kumar Sinha*  A looming ecological and social disaster is unfolding in the forests of Gadchiroli, Maharashtra. Over 1.23 lakh trees are set to be felled for mining activities—an alarming development that has sparked widespread protests from Adivasi communities and civil society organizations. They are urging the state and central governments to immediately halt all mining-related approvals and operations in the region. They are also calling for a complete review of all clearances, including Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) and Detailed Project Reports (DPR), based on holistic ecological, hydrological, and social assessments. These groups demand that forest corridors and tiger habitats be recognized as protected areas, and that the laws under the Forest Rights Act (2006) and PESA Act (1996) be strictly enforced. Most crucially, they insist that decisions made by tribal gram sabhas be respected through transparent public hearings.

‘Act of war on agriculture’: Aruna Rodrigues slams GM crop expansion and regulatory apathy

By Rosamma Thomas*  Expressing appreciation to the Union Agriculture Minister for inviting suggestions from farmers and concerned citizens on the sharp decline in cotton crop productivity, Aruna Rodrigues—lead petitioner in the Supreme Court case ongoing since 2005 that seeks a moratorium on genetically modified (GM) crops—wrote to Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on July 14, 2025, stating that conflicts of interest have infiltrated India’s regulatory system like a spreading cancer, including within the Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR).

Overriding India's constitutional sovereignty? Citizens urge PM to reject WHO IHR amendments

By A Representative   A group of concerned Indian citizens, including medical professionals and activists, has sent an urgent appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to reject proposed amendments to the International Health Regulations (IHR) before the ratification deadline of July 19, 2025. 

Farmer 'stripped, assaulted' by BSF jawan in West Bengal border village: Rights group urges NHRC to act

By A Representative  A disturbing incident of alleged custodial torture and public humiliation has been brought to the attention of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) by a leading human rights group, Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (MASUM), involving a Muslim farmer in a border village of West Bengal. In a formal complaint, Kirity Roy, Secretary of MASUM and National Convenor of the Programme Against Custodial Torture & Impunity (PACTI), has urged the NHRC to take urgent action following an incident that occurred on the morning of June 12, 2025, in Hakimpur village near the India–Bangladesh border under Swarupnagar police station, North 24 Parganas district. According to the complaint, 38-year-old Jahar Ali Gazi, a resident of Hakimpur Uttar Para, was on his way to his field in Kadamtala Math around 7:30 am when he was stopped by an on-duty Border Security Force (BSF) jawan near the 7 No. Outpost of Hakimpur Border Outpost (143 Battalion). The location...

The Empire strikes inward: Britain’s colonial legacy now targets its own citizens

By Bhabani Shankar Nayak   British colonialism may belong to the past, but the colonial mindset of the ruling elite in Britain persists. Today, these elites are applying colonial values and repressive political tactics not abroad, but to their own people. 'Home' is now where British colonialism is taking root—threatening civil liberties and undermining liberal democracy. The criminalisation of dissent has become a shared political practice across the Conservative and Labour leadership.

India’s zero-emission, eco-friendly energy strategies have a long way to go, despite impressive progress

By N.S. Venkataraman*   The recent report released by OPEC’s World Oil Outlook 2025 has predicted that by the year 2050, crude oil would replace coal as India’s key energy source. Clearly, OPEC expects that India’s dependence on fossil fuels for energy will continue to remain high in one form or another.

Ecological alarm over pumped storage projects in Western Ghats: Policy analyst writes to PM

By A Representative   In a detailed letter addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, energy and climate policy analyst Shankar Sharma has raised grave concerns over the escalating approval and construction of Pumped Storage Projects (PSPs) across India’s ecologically fragile river valleys. He has warned that these projects, if pursued unchecked, could result in irreparable damage to the country’s riverine ecology, biodiversity hotspots, and forest wealth—particularly in the Western Ghats.

A nation betrayed? Embroiled in controversy, Bharat Mata is 'again in shackles'

By Dr. Prem Singh*   Bharat Mata, India’s revered symbol, is again embroiled in controversy, reignited by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). In Kerala, the Lieutenant Governor’s display of a saffron-clad Bharat Mata at a government event led to a boycott by the state’s Education Minister, who argued that the Constitution champions inclusive, democratic nationalism, not a singular cultural icon. The Chief Minister condemned the use of Raj Bhavan to push RSS ideology, escalating tensions as the Lieutenant Governor expressed outrage.