True colors of U.S. in Russia-Ukraine conflict: U.S. profits from the crisis; Europe bears the consequences

(Cartoon by Tan Xiguang)

The continuous eastward expansion of the U.S.-led NATO is one of the root causes of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. However, the consequences of the conflict are largely borne by Europe.

While addressing a G7 leaders meeting on March 24, 2022, U.S. President Joe Biden said that “NATO is as strong and united as it has ever been.”

This remark undoubtedly tied Europe closer to the war wagon driven by the U.S. in the latter’s attempt to seek hegemony, and forced NATO to follow Washington in imposing sanctions, while paying the price for these actions.

Affected by the massive sanctions targeting Russia, multiple economic indicators of Europe worsened. Paolo Gentiloni, European Commissioner for Economy, earlier pointed out that after the Russia-Ukraine conflict broke out, the soaring prices of bulk commodities pushed inflation to a new high; suspended trade ties aggravated supply chain pressures, and consumer confidence dropped sharply, all indicating that the conflict has had a significant and far-reaching impact on the European economy.

In addition, European countries also face huge pressure from the refugee crisis triggered by the conflict. The UN Refugee Agency announced on April 20 that more than 5 million refugees from Ukraine had crossed borders into neighboring countries, causing an unprecedented refugee crisis.

As the culprit behind the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the U.S., however, is reaping benefits without getting itself involved militarily.

The European stock market fell sharply; the euro drastically weakened against the dollar, and a significant amount of hedge funds flew out of Europe to the U.S. In March, the U.S. received only 12 refugees from Ukraine, with a large number of Ukrainian refugees still waiting at the U.S.-Mexico border. In addition, since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the stock prices of U.S. military firms soared, indicating that U.S. firms are making a great fortune from the conflict.

It is pretty clear who benefits from the Russia-Ukraine conflict and who loses from it.