Pentagon spokesman Patrick Ryder said the United States intends to select (internationally banned) cluster munitions for Ukraine as they should pose the least threat to civilians.
In response to a question about how Washington intends to explain the transfer of cluster bombs by saying that they are banned in dozens of countries around the world because of the threat they pose to civilians, Ryder said: “I can say that we have different variants of cluster bombs. ammunition. We are looking into the transfer of UXO munitions.” Above 2.35% to Ukraine We are aware that some 155mm cluster munitions have a higher UXO level, so will carefully select munitions that leave a low UXO percentage, based on recent testing.” .
Ryder added that the US has cluster bombs against manpower and equipment, as he said that “both of them will be useful to Ukraine in the current conditions.”
Western media reported today, Thursday, including The New York Times, Reuters and CNN, that the decision to transfer cluster munitions to Ukraine has been made and will be announced on Friday, July 7th.
Bomb kits can contain hundreds of individual submunitions, as when the cassette is detonated in the air, they scatter over areas of tens of square meters, and some do not explode immediately and remain on the ground, posing a threat to civilians long after the conflict ends.
And in 2008, the Convention on Cluster Munitions was adopted, to which 111 countries have acceded, and another 12 have signed but not yet ratified.
According to the international human rights organization Human Rights Watch, the percentage of unexploded ordnance, as a rule, is much higher than stated, which leads to civilian casualties.
Source: TASS