The US has confirmed it will provide cluster munitions to Ukraine, following calls from human rights groups for Kyiv and Moscow to stop using the controversial weapons.
What is a cluster bomb?
A cluster bomb is a weapon that breaks apart in the air and releases multiple explosive submunitions or “bomblets” across a wide area. They can be delivered by planes, artillery and missiles, according to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).
How dangerous are they?
The bomblets are designed to detonate on hitting the ground and anyone in that area is very likely to be killed or seriously injured. Beyond the initial damage caused by the munitions upon impact, many bomblets fail to detonate immediately. Up to 40% of bomblets have failed to explode in some recent conflicts, according to the ICRC.
As a result, cluster bombs, like landmines, pose a risk to civilians long after their use. Unexploded ordinance from cluster bombs can kill and maim people years or even decades after the munitions were fired.
Human rights groups say that the use of cluster bombs in populated areas is a violation of international humanitarian law because they cause indiscriminate destruction. Sixty percent of cluster bomb casualties are people injured while undertaking everyday activities, according to Reuters. One third of all recorded cluster munitions casualties are children.
More than 120 countries have signed the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which prohibits the use, production, transfer and stockpiling of the weapons. Russia, Ukraine and the US have all declined to sign the treaty. Since the adoption of the convention in 2008, 99% of global stockpiles have been destroyed, according to the Cluster Munition Coalition.
Where have they been used?
The weapons were first used in the second world war and at least 15 countries have used them in the years after, according to Reuters. They include Eritrea, Ethiopia, France, Israel, Morocco, the Netherlands, Britain, Russia and the US.
The US dropped an estimated 260m cluster munitions in Laos between 1964 and 1973. So far, fewer than 400,000 – or 0.47% – have been cleared and at least 11,000 people have been killed, according to Reuters.
Russian troops have used cluster munitions in populated areas in Ukraine, research by the Guardian has found, resulting in the deaths of scores of civilians. Ukraine has also used them in efforts to retake Russian-occupied territory, according to Human Rights Watch.
Why does Ukraine want them?
Kyiv has been pushing for cluster bombs, arguing that the weapons would help in its counteroffensive by allowing its troops to target entrenched Russian positions and to overcome its disadvantage in manpower and artillery.
Until recently, Washington had resisted Kyiv’s calls, citing concerns about the weapons’ use and saying they were not necessary. However US officials have recently signaled a shift and a senior Pentagon official said last month that the US military believes cluster munitions “would be useful, especially against dug-in Russian positions”.
But rights groups have called on Russia and Ukraine to stop using cluster bombs and urged the US not to supply the “inherently indiscriminate” munitions to Kyiv. “Cluster munitions used by Russia and Ukraine are killing civilians now and will continue to do so for many years,” said Mary Wareham, acting arms director at Human Rights Watch. “Both sides should immediately stop using them and not try to get more of these indiscriminate weapons.”
US officials have claimed that any munitions provided to Ukraine would have a reduced “dud rate”, meaning there will be far fewer unexploded rounds that could later result in unintended civilian deaths.