Negative Nationalism Sells Guns

By JASON SIBERT

A negative form of nationalism has been making its appearance all over the world as of late. And it’s having an impact on the international system and the size of the arsenals that inhabit that system.

This form of nationalism, as represented by President Donald Trump in the United States, Marine LePen in France, Narenda Modi in India, Nigel Farage in the United Kingdom, and Jair Bolsanaro in Brazil, seeks to defend the individual nation-state from enemies foreign and domestic. Racial and religious minorities are a threat to the nation-state internally.

An example of this in our own country would be Trump’s rhetoric on Muslims and Latino-Americans. The interests of other nation-states are also a threat to the nation-state in this form of politics. Trump’s trade policies and his abandonment of treaties like the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action and the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty are examples.

Much has been written about this form of politics in the media. Some have addressed its impacts on attempts to control nation-states’ increasingly deadly arsenals via international law (treaties). However, there is another issue related to arms control that needs to be addressed by those who believe in the concept of both international law and arms control. That’s the fact that arms manufactures are benefitting from the current political zeitgeist.

Modi was just reelected in India. Much of the media coverage concentrated on what this meant for India and for the world in general. Less mentioned was what his reelection meant for arms manufacturers in our country. According to the Stockholm International Peace Institute, India ranked fourth in 2018 behind the United States, China, and Saudi Arabia in defense spending. India bested Russia in 2018 to reach the current position. According to writer Mayur Sontaake, India ranks second behind Saudi Arabia when it comes to our country’s defense exports. This means that arms manufacturers often lobby India to receive a greater percentage of what it spends on its military.

In his initial campaign, Modi campaigned on a larger and stronger national defense. Right before his reelection, Modi carried out strikes on what he claimed was a terrorist base in Pakistan. He will most likely use nationalism to continue to build India’s defenses in the coming years.

Traditionally, India has leaned toward Russia in foreign policy. Russia is India’s largest trading partner in weapons, followed by the US. However, the equation is changing. India says it wants to pivot defense spending to the US. Sontaake stated that the country has agreed to purchase Russia’s S-400 missile defense system, overtaking Lockheed-Martin, THADD, and Raytheon’s Patriot system, but sanctions against Russia could mean more business for Lockheed-Martin, Raytheon, and THADD.

The US and India have become closer aligned to counter China’s rising influence in the region. This relationship could become even stronger in Modi’s next term. Like Trump, Modi is a nationalist who wants to create jobs for his people. The world is seeing a toxic brew of nationalism and profit-motivated arms companies.

Where does it end? The world’s power blocks are balancing each other with more and more military spending. For democratic-republics to remain vibrant, and this way of life is under attack from the rise of right-wing nationalism, the body politic of democratic-republics has to hold power accountable.

Will we see the emergence of an opposition movement to these awful trends? A movement that holds power and arms manufactures accountable? A movement that stresses an alternative to the way right-wing nationalism tears us apart on a national and international scale? This movement would stress the common humanity of all people and how profit-oriented weapons manufacturing and right-wing nationalism keeps us from fulfilling our potential as humans. This movement would fight for idea of arms control, stress its successes in the past, and address the fact that arms control helps us fulfill our potential. What’s the end of the story? I guess we’ll see.

Jason Sibert worked for the Suburban Journals in the St. Louis area for over a decade and is currently executive director of the Peace Economy Project in St. Louis, Mo. Email jasonsibert@hotmail.com.

From The Progressive Populist, July 1-15, 2019

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