After 500 days of war, cluster bombs represent a new phase of brutality

For 500 harrowing days, Ukraine has defended its borders against the Russian invaders. For 500 days David has been more than brave against Goliath. Nevertheless, the problems of the Ukrainians have not abated for 500 days. There is no end to the war in sight.

Now a feared and internationally banned weapon should make a breakthrough. The US government gave in to Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s demands and agreed to provide cluster munitions. As part of an $800 million military package.

Experts: New spheres of brutality
The decision is controversial. Humanitarian aid agencies and military experts agree that the brutality of this war will reach new heights, even if Russia is already actively taking up arms. As a reminder, just a few months ago, the United States was still refusing to supply Ukraine with Abrams’ main battle tank.

A 2022 quote from NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg shows the sensitivity of US President Joe Biden’s endorsement of the delivery of cluster bombs as “not permanent”. He described the weapon at the time as follows: “It’s brutal, this is inhumane and a violation of international law.”

What was yesterday is different today
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, America’s voice at the United Nations, also chose her words carefully at the beginning of the war. “We have seen videos of Russian troops bringing extraordinarily lethal weapons into Ukraine that should not be on the battlefield,” she told the General Assembly last year. “These include cluster munitions and vacuum bombs, which are banned under the Geneva Conventions.”

It reads differently today: her speech can be read on the official website of the American mission to the UN. In the manuscript, the words “who have no business on the battlefield” are crossed out and the word “forbidden” is an asterisk. Symbolic of the 180 degree rotation of the US.

Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, assured the White House on Friday: “It’s a tough decision. It’s a decision we’ve been putting off. It is a decision in which we had to look very carefully at the possible damage to civilians.”

Many civilian casualties were feared
The type of ammunition has been criticized because the weapon produces a relatively large number of duds with each salvo fired, which later explode in the hands or under the feet of civilians. Often by children. Cluster munitions work particularly well against ‘soft targets’, as they say in military parlance.

With the weapon systems already available in Ukraine, up to 8,000 bombs can be spread over an area the size of about 50 football fields with one salvo of cluster munitions, the aid organization Handicap International, which specializes in duds and explosive remnants of war, reports.

The Pentagon assured that the number of duds in the ammunition delivered was low. 2.35 percent is given – compared to 30 to 40 percent for Russian shells and bombs. However, the US Department of Defense did not want to present a study on this. According to the congress research service, manufacturers estimate the error rate at 3 to 5 percent, deminers estimate it at 10 to 30 percent, reports the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”.

Cluster bombs against ammunition problem?
The cluster missiles are intended to bombard from their defenses the Russians who have dug in along the front lines in recent months. The radical nature of Biden’s decision also indicates Washington’s concern that Putin could exhaust Ukraine in the long run.

Zelenskyj’s troops have been struggling with ammunition problems for some time. Especially the 155 mm artillery shells are a headache file. The Ukrainian army fires – estimates vary here – 4,000 to 7,000 shells of this type every day. By comparison, according to official figures, the US produces only 14,000 – per month.

Biden also reiterated in a CNN interview, “This is a war with munitions. And they’re out of ammunition, and we’re out of ammunition.” That’s the case for the ruthless cluster bomb bypass. For the United States, the war seems like a race against time—as long as there are still domestic majorities support Ukraine.

Biden’s race against time
Biden’s position is up for re-election next year. His presidency was initially damaged by the failed withdrawal from Afghanistan, but will now sometimes be marked by success or failure in Ukraine.

It is possible that the Republicans will win the presidential election. Within the “Grand Old Party” ultra-right majorities have formed in recent years. Under the administration of Donald Trump, the image of Russia has changed considerably. Many Republicans are no longer willing to support Ukraine.

The United States is also making itself vulnerable in foreign policy by circulating internationally banned munitions. More than 100 countries – including almost all US partners – have signed an agreement against the use of cluster munitions.

Leon Panetta, former CIA chief and former US defense minister, told the British Guardian: “We have reached a point in this war where Joe Biden and also the allies are watching very closely whether this is a time that ultimately decides fate.” of this war.” The US president will probably have to answer a few questions at next week’s NATO summit in Lithuania.