Global Observation丨Why did the US military become a "special disaster zone" under the epidemic?

　　According to information released by the US Department of Defense a few days ago, the number of active military personnel who have died of new coronary pneumonia has increased to 8 and the number of infections has exceeded 65,000.

At the same time, according to many US media reports, the suicide rate of American soldiers during the epidemic has increased by 20% over the same period last year, and the suicide rate of active duty soldiers has increased by 30%.

　　Although the statistics are incomplete and the reasons for suicides among soldiers are complex, US Army and Air Force officials believe that the ongoing epidemic in the United States has added additional pressure to the already highly stressed military.

Suicide, anxiety, violence... Why are American soldiers so "unthinking"?

US Secretary of the Army Ryan McCarthy

said in an interview that although it is not certain that the new crown virus is the cause, the number of suicides by the US military has indeed increased significantly after the outbreak in the United States.

McCarthy

　　Suicides by the US military today have increased compared with the same period last year.

Since the military has experienced 19 consecutive years of military operations, and the frequency of operations is comparable to the peak period of the US military in the Middle East in 2009 and 2010, our military is approaching the pressure limit.

The high levels of military suicides are roughly in line with the timeline of the most severe period of the new crown pneumonia epidemic in the United States.

Obviously, American soldiers are under additional pressure from the epidemic.

The US Air Force Chief of Staff Charles Brown

also expressed the same view.

He said that the epidemic has increased the pressure on the military.

From the perspective of suicide, "now we are on the same bad road as last year."

This is not just a problem for the U.S. Air Force, but a national problem because people are full of fear of the unknown.

　　US media reports also said that in the face of multiple pressures brought by the epidemic, military deployment, and response to various domestic crises, violence in the US military has also increased.

According to

,

number of US military referrals for mental health issues increased by 48% from April to August this year compared with the previous five months. The number of mental health calls and online mutual aid groups It also increased by 10%.

　　Why has suicide and violence in the US military increased significantly?

Teng Jianqun, director of the US Institute of the China Institute of International Studies, believes that the pressure of the epidemic and the continuous emphasis on combat readiness training by the upper ranks of the US military are important reasons.

Teng Jianqun

　　After President Trump declared a national emergency on March 15, the US military also conducted a 60-day quarantine.

During this period, due to lack of social interaction and restrictions on movement, the US military fell into isolation. In particular, some weak-willed officers and soldiers appeared mentally depressed, even committed suicide, or took violent actions to vent their dissatisfaction.

This has become a normal phenomenon.

In addition, there is another pressure on the US military, that is, despite the seriousness of the epidemic, the high level of the US military still emphasizes the combat readiness training of the US military, which also intensifies the psychological pressure on the soldiers.

Overseas rotation, aircraft carrier comeback, military exercises against the wind... The US military is not only infecting itself!

　　The surge in psychological problems is actually a reflection of the development of the epidemic in the US military.

After the outbreak in the United States, the US military, which should have been closely guarded, unexpectedly became a "special disaster zone."

In addition to the successive outbreaks of epidemics in military institutions and bases in various parts of the country, US troops stationed abroad have frequently sounded epidemic alarms.

Coupled with the defiance and ineffective cooperation of the local government's epidemic prevention regulations in the host country, the infected US military has also brought additional difficulties to the global epidemic prevention and control.

　　On September 28, the US military in South Korea announced that five American soldiers were found to be infected with the new crown virus after arriving in South Korea from the United States.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the five newly discovered cases

cases of

.

　　Japan has the same experience as South Korea.

After the outbreak, cluster infections occurred one after another in the US military bases in Japan, which once caused strong dissatisfaction from the Japanese side.

According to the latest data released by Okinawa Prefecture, Japan, the

.

　　In the face of the epidemic, the negligence and recklessness of the US troops stationed abroad have caused great negative effects on the local communities.

The Pyeongtaek City Government of Gyeonggi-do, South Korea, where the U.S. Army Command is located in South Korea, once recommended that the rotating personnel of the U.S. military in South Korea undergo virus testing before entering the country to alleviate public concerns, but it also admitted that it "cannot force the U.S. military to follow suit."

　　It's not just the U.S. military bases all over the world that are worrying, but also the U.S. aircraft carriers cruising around the world.

So far, the "Roosevelt", "Nimitz", "Reagan", "Carl Vinson", "Bush" and many other US aircraft carriers have suffered epidemics.

However, the Pentagon does not seem to plan to give them enough rest time.

According to the US "Navy Times" report, the

, which was the

　　In addition, the US military has also forcibly conducted military exercises in many places around the world regardless of the risk of the spread of the epidemic on a large scale.

For example, last month, the U.S.-led "Ring-Pacific Military Exercise-2020" was held amid opposition, although 12,000 people in Hawaii, the place where the exercise was held, previously wrote to the governor to cancel the exercise due to epidemic prevention.

In the rehearsal, nine Thai soldiers were infected with the new crown virus after training with the US military. Thailand subsequently withdrew from the exercise.

　　Why did the US military under the epidemic become a "special disaster zone"?

Teng Jianqun analyzed and pointed out that under the leadership of the Trump administration's "political first" concept, the

.

Teng Jianqun

　　On the one hand, the U.S. Department of Defense takes the lead in implementing the Trump administration’s instructions, which means to set an example for the resumption of work and production; second, it is obviously unrealistic to close the U.S. soldiers for a long time and restrict them.

Therefore, on the one hand, the U.S. military brought the virus from outside to the barracks, and on the other hand, it brought the virus from the barracks to the relevant countries. This shows that the U.S. military actually has neither pre-plans nor adequate preparations in terms of epidemic prevention. At the same time, there has been a lot of organization and coordination. The problem.