The Biden administration is considering sending highly controversial weapons to Ukraine, despite 100 countries agreeing to ban cluster munition warheads more than a decade ago.
Ukraine’s request described to CNN by several officials comes amid criticism from Republicans that President Joe Biden has essentially signed a blank check to fund Ukraine’s war with Russia and heeded every plea for help from the Eastern European country.
It also follows Biden who has already proposed sending an additional $37.7 billion in aid to Ukraine in next year’s funding bill, which would bring the total amount of aid to a whopping $105.5 billion in less than a year.
Ukraine’s request for cluster munition warheads, which Biden’s team has been considering for several months without rejecting outright, is one of the most controversial requests made since the war began in February.
A cluster munition is an explosive weapon that releases smaller sub-munitions. They are imprecise by design and can cover large areas. Since some do not explode on impact, they can also present longer-term risks, similar to landmines.
A Ukrainian official told CNN that the United States has not yet approved the request because they are concerned that the munitions will be used against the Russian people and not just the military.
‘And that? The Russians use cluster munitions against us,’ the official said when asked about the negative perception of the use of cluster munition warheads. ‘The [US] The concern is for collateral damage. We are going to use them against the Russian troops, not against the Russian population.’
President Joe Biden’s administration has been weighing for months a request from Ukraine to send highly controversial cluster munition warheads to help in the war against Russia. Pictured: A large amount of debris from missile shells was used by Russia to attack Ukraine in Kharkiv, Ukraine, on December 7.
Biden’s team has not rejected the request outright after sending $67.3 billion to help Ukraine in the past 10 months.
Cluster munitions are banned in nations that have ratified the Convention on Cluster Munitions (CCM), which was adopted in Dublin, Ireland, in May 2008. The United States is not on the long list of countries that have spoken out. against the use of the weapon.
The international treaty was signed by 123 countries as of February 2022. While 110 states have ratified the treaty, 13 states have signed it but have yet to ratify it.
According to Cluster Munition Monitor 2022, the 16 countries that refused to sign the Convention and still produce cluster munitions include Brazil, China, Egypt, Greece, Iran, Israel, India, North Korea, Pakistan, Poland, Romania, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, United States and Turkey.
“Ukraine’s ability to profit in current and future phases of the conflict is not dependent on or in any way linked to the acquisition of such munitions,” a congressional aide told CNN.
The United States has already sent $67.3 billion in aid to Ukraine as part of three separate packages.
