US plans to send cluster bombs to Ukraine

An arms package that includes cluster bombs fired by 155mm Howitzer cannons is expected to be announced as soon as Friday, according to three US officials who spoke on condition of anonymity. One of the officials said the measure has been under serious consideration for at least a week.

America plans to send nuclear bombs to Ukraine picture 1 — Ukrainian soldiers prepare 155mm artillery shells on the battlefield. Photo: AFP

The White House said sending cluster bombs to Ukraine was “under active consideration” but made no announcement. President Joe Biden will attend a NATO summit next week in Lithuania to discuss the war in Ukraine.

Human Rights Watch called on Russia and Ukraine to stop using cluster bombs and urged the United States not to supply them. The group said both Russian and Ukrainian forces have used the weapons, killing Ukrainian civilians.

The bombs, banned by more than 120 countries, often unleash large numbers of smaller bomblets that can kill indiscriminately over a wide area, threatening civilians. Unexploded bombs pose a danger for years after conflicts end.

A 2009 law banned the export of certain types of cluster munitions from the United States. However, President Joe Biden could waive the bans on these bombs, as his predecessor Donald Trump did in January 2021 to allow the export of cluster munition technology to South Korea.

Ukraine has called on members of the US Congress to pressure the Biden administration to approve the delivery of cluster bombs known as Dual-Purpose Improvised Conventional Munitions (DPICM).

A Pentagon spokesman said the Biden administration is considering sending DPICMs to Ukraine, but only those with a failure rate of less than 2.35%. The US military believes cluster bombs would be useful for Ukraine, but they have not yet been approved for Kiev due to various restrictions and concerns.

Also in the new aid package, expected to be worth $800 million, Ukraine will receive ammunition for the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) and ground vehicles such as Bradley fighting vehicles and Stryker armored personnel carriers.

This will be the 42nd aid package approved by the US for Ukraine since the conflict with Russia began in February 2022, worth more than $40 billion. Ukraine is also asking the West to send advanced fighter jets, including F-16s, as it launches a counteroffensive.

NATO members Denmark and the Netherlands are leading a coalition of Western countries to train pilots and support staff, maintain aircraft and eventually provide F-16s to Ukraine.

Bui Huy (according to Reuters, AFP, CNA)

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