Published 13:35 IST, February 18th 2020
Bernie Sanders cites India in list shaming massive US military expenditure
Bernie Sanders said that the United States’ military budget is larger than 11 listed countries combined including India, China, and Saudi Arabia among others.
Democratic primary Bernie Sanders cited India in a list of countries’ military expenditure to reiterate his call on cutting down on military budget and divert it for other welfare programmes. Sanders, who has been a vocal critique of the massive military expenditure of the United States, listed a number of countries to highlight the issue.
The 78-year-old Democrat said that the United States’ military budget is larger than 11 listed countries combined including India, China, Saudi Arabia, Russia, the United Kindom, and France among others. According to Sanders’ tweet, while India’s military budget stands at $60 billion, China spends $181 billion, more than triple the amount of India’s military expenditure.
Sanders pledge for elections
Sanders, the Democratic primary’s early front-runner, has continuously been advocating for the reduction in US military expenditure and a change in “national priorities”. In the run-up to the 2020 presidential elections, Sanders called for diverting the money towards housing, education, and healthcare to reduce inequality.
Social media was divided on Sanders’ suggestion and many Twitter users pointed out that military spending is one of the reasons that the United States is a ‘superpower’. A user commented that such proposals will never help him to become the President. Check out the reactions:
Updated 13:35 IST, February 18th 2020