Russia-Ukraine war: As the Russia-Ukraine war is set to complete 500 days with no end in sight, the United States has announced the provision of another $800 million military aid package to Kyiv as assistance for the war effort against Russian forces, including cluster munitions, according to people familiar with the decision.
According to US officials, the latest military assistance to Ukraine is likely to be announced on Friday, AP reported. The decision comes amid widespread concerns that the munitions will result in civilian casualties.
The controversial cluster bombs are known for being dispersed over a large area and destroying multiple targets at the same time. They have been long sought by the Ukrainian government. The munitions provided by the US reportedly have a reduced 'dud rate', meaning that there will be fewer unexploded rounds.
US officials said that Russia is already using cluster munitions in battlefields and populated civilian areas. Ukraine has asked for the munitions as they are said to be mounting a larger counteroffensive to repel Russian forces on their territory.
Pentagon Press Secretary Pat Ryder also noted on Thursday that if the munitions were provided to Ukraine, the US "would be carefully selecting rounds with lower dud rates, for which we have recent testing data". He also said that Russians were using cluster munitions of a very high dud rate.
The cluster munitions provided by the US can be loaded with specific charges to help Ukrainian forces penetrate armour and hit multiple personnel at once.
US House Committee for Foreign Affairs chairman Michael McCaul said that the move was long overdue. "Now is the time for the US and its allies to provide Ukraine with the systems it needs from cluster munitions to F-16s to ATACMS in order to aid their critical counteroffensive. Any further delay will cost the lives of countless Ukrainians and prolong this brutal war," he added.
According to the Pentagon, the cluster munitions were used on a large-scale basis by the US during the Iraq invasion in 2003. As many as 1,500 cluster bombs were used during the US invasion in Afghanistan in 2001. Many groups have raised alarms over their use by Russian forces in Ukraine.
The US, Russia and Ukraine are among the countries who have not signed on a convention banning the use of cluster bombs.
Meanwhile, the Russia-Ukraine war is set to complete 500 days later this week, since Russia invaded the latter on February 2022. Scores of missile attacks and intense fighting have resulted in the deaths of scores of civilians from both sides, along with massive civilian casualties.
The latest Russian rocket strike in Ukraine's western city of Lviv on Thursday has claimed the lives of ten people, while 42 people were injured, according to the local mayor.
(with agency inputs)
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