Ukraine already gets cluster munitions from USA – Tarnavsky
Oleksandr Tarnavsky, commander of the Tavria operational and strategic group of troops, announced that Ukraine had received cluster munitions from the United States after President Joseph Biden announced last week that he had decided to approve their transfer to the country.
“We just got them, we haven’t used them yet, but they can radically change [the situation on the battlefield] … The enemy also understands that with getting this ammunition, we will have an advantage. The enemy will give up that part of the terrain where it is possible to use this,” Tarnavsky said in an interview with CNN on Thursday.
According to him, senior leadership will decide on the “areas of territory where it can be used,” Tarnavsky said, noting that the restrictions on the use of clusters, saying their use is prohibited in heavily populated areas, even if occupied by Russian forces.
“The Russians think that we will use it on all areas of the front … This is very wrong. But they are very worried,” Tarnavsky noted.
As reported, the Pentagon announced a new package of military assistance to Ukraine in the amount of $800 million, which will include 155-mm cluster shells. According to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, the issue of supplying cluster munitions to Ukraine is solely the business of each individual ally.
Cluster bombs are banned in many countries, but not in the USA, Ukraine and the Russian Federation.
Ammunition drops explosive bombs, killing enemy soldiers over a large area. At the same time, unexploded ordnance can pose a long-term threat to civilians.
The Russian Federation has been using its own cluster munitions against Ukraine since the invasion more than a year ago. Ukraine also responded with such weapons.