WASHINGTON, July 20. /TASS/. Ukrainian servicemen have started using cluster munitions supplied by the US on the battlefield, the Washington Post reported on Thursday, citing Ukrainian officials.

According to them, the Ukrainian armed forces have started using cluster munitions on the southeastern part of the front in an attempt to break through well-fortified Russian positions that have slowed down the Ukrainian counteroffensive. The Ukrainian forces are also expected to use this type of munition in the direction of Artyomovsk (the Ukrainian name of the city is Bakhmut).

On July 7, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said that his country had decided to send Ukraine cluster munitions, the use of which is opposed by the UN. On July 13, Director for Operations in the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Douglas Sims said that the Ukrainian armed forces had received cluster munitions from the US.

In turn, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that Russia reserves the right to use cluster munitions in response to Ukraine's use of them. The supply of such weapons and their use should be considered a crime, Putin added.

Russian Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu pointed out that if US cluster munitions were delivered to Ukraine, Russian forces would be forced to use similar means of destruction against the Ukrainian army. He added that Russia had refrained from using cluster munitions during the special military operation because it was aware of the threat it posed to civilians. According to Shoigu, the supply of these weapons by the Americans will lead to the protraction of the conflict.

About munitions

Cluster bombs can contain hundreds of smaller bomblets. When a cluster is detonated in the air, they are scattered over an area of tens of square meters. Some do not explode immediately and remain on the ground, posing a threat to civilians long after the conflict has ended. In 2008, the Convention on Cluster Munitions was adopted, to which 111 countries have now acceded and 12 more have signed but not yet ratified.

According to Human Rights Watch, the proportion of unexploded bomblets is usually much higher than declared, resulting in civilian casualties.