The widely banned munition is wreaking havoc on Russian infantry, but concerns about unexploded ordnance remain.
Ukrainian forces use a U.S.-made M109 howitzer to fire conventional artillery toward Russian positions in the Kharkiv region on July 30. The M109 is capable of firing cluster ammunitions.
Human Rights Watch called Biden’s decision “profoundly troubling.” Germany, France, Canada, the Netherlands and several other NATO allies publicly opposed the move, citing the potential for civilian casualties. Forty-nine House Democrats, alongside 98 Republicans, voted in favor of a defense bill amendment that would have sought to block the transfer.
“The main benefit is that the enemy is now very scared to go on assault,” said Stanislav, who, like other soldiers, spoke on the condition that only his first name or call sign be used because of security concerns in discussing sensitive military matters. When it comes to offensive operations, Ukraine uses the munitions to fire into dense forests when the precise location of Russian forces is unknown, to hit unarmored vehicles, and to spray bomblets over infantry to keep them burrowed in foxholes and unable to return fire.
While the cluster bombs bring a qualitative military benefit, they also provide quantitative advantage at a time when Ukraine needs more ammunition to extend the scope of the counteroffensive. The start of the latest campaign in early June saw a dramatic increase in Ukrainian artillery fire, to 8,000 rounds per day from approximately 3,000 to 5,000, military analysts said.
“Cleaning up unexploded ordnance is going to require a huge effort - not because of U.S. cluster munitions but because of the incredible amount of mines planted by the enemy,” Andriy Besedin, the head of the Kupyansk city military administration, said in an interview. Many details surrounding the U.S. supply of the cluster bombs, however, remain unknown to the public, prompting human rights groups to call for greater transparency. “We haven’t been told the quantity of cluster munitions being transferred and for how long this will be done,” said Mary Wareham, an arms specialist at Human Rights Watch. “We also don’t know the dud rates of these particular munitions.
A wounded soldier is treated at a medical stabilization point in the Donbas region of Ukraine on Aug. 10.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Ukraine's Zelenskyy in Netherlands after US approved sending Dutch F-16 jets to UkraineUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived in the Netherlands after a visit to Sweden
Read more »
Ukraine's Zelenskyy in Netherlands after US approved sending Dutch F-16 jets to UkraineUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived in the Netherlands after a visit to Sweden.
Read more »
Ukraine's Zelenskyy in Netherlands after US approved sending Dutch F-16 jets to UkraineUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived in the Netherlands after a visit to Sweden. The Netherlands on Friday said the United States had given its approval to deliver Dutch F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine’s air force.
Read more »
Ukraine's Zelenskyy in Netherlands after US approved sending Dutch F-16 jets to UkraineUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has arrived in the Netherlands after a visit to Sweden.
Read more »
Media hides it but Bidens are in big trouble as Americans get wise to ‘nothingburger’“President Biden now unquestionably would be a fact witness for the defense in any criminal trial,” lawyer Chris Clark wrote in a 32-page letter obtained by Politico.
Read more »