Biden To Send Controversial Cluster Bombs To Ukraine
President Joe Biden has approved plans to provide Ukraine controversial cluster bombs, which will circumvent longstanding U.S. policy, as part of a new military package set to be announced on Friday.
Cluster munitions are small frag bombs capable of sending multiple small explosives across a wide area. However, the weapons are controversial because of their ability to increase civilian casualties.
The Defense Department will provide Ukraine’s military munitions that have a dud rate over U.S. legal limits. “Dud rate” refers to the rate at which the bombs fail to explode. Civilian injuries or deaths can later result from accidental triggering of unexploded ordnance.
For years, U.S. law has prohibited the production or transfer of cluster munitions with a dud rate of more than 1%, according to the Washington Post. However, Biden is able to bypass the mandate set by Congress as commander-in-chief.
Since last year, officials in Kyiv have asked the White House for more cluster bombs, but the administration has been hesitant as more than 100 countries around the world have signed prior treaties barring their usage on the battlefield.
The decision comes as Ukraine’s summer counteroffensive against the Russians in the eastern part of the country has slowed as soldiers become further entrenched around cities such as Bakhmut.
According to WaPo:
The principal weapon under consideration, an M864 artillery shell first produced in 1987, is fired from the 155mm howitzers the United States and other Western countries have provided Ukraine. In its last publicly available estimate, more than 20 years ago, the Pentagon assessed that artillery shell to have a “dud” rate of 6 percent, meaning that at least four of each of the 72 submunitions each shell carries would remain unexploded across an area of approximately 22,500 square meters — roughly the size of 4½ football fields.
However, new assessments from the Pentagon indicate that the failure rates with these munitions does not exceed 2.35%, which still exceeds the 1% limit set by Congress. Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder noted on Thursday that officials are “carefully selecting” munitions with a dud rate at or no higher than 2.35% for the Ukrainians.
Along with this weaponry, the U.S. will also provide Ukrainians with new armored vehicles, howitzer ammunitions, and the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System as part of a $800 million military aid package.
Recently, amid failures on the battlefield, Russian President Vladimir Putin has faced an armed uprising from Wagner mercenaries and military officials inside Russia.
