Ukrainian forces have begun using US-made cluster munitions against Russia’s defensive positions, two US military officials said Thursday.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss operational matters, said the weapons were used at multiple locations in southeastern Ukraine, but did not elaborate.
The Washington Post first reported Ukrainian troops using the weapons, citing Ukrainian officials. The Post said Kiev had started firing cluster munitions in an attempt to break through established Russian defenses that have slowed Ukraine’s counter-offensive campaign to retake territory.
Ukrainian authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether they had begun using the weapons.
Hundreds of thousands of weapons arrived in Ukraine from US military depots in Europe, Pentagon officials said last week. Colin H. Kahl, who recently stepped down as Secretary of Defense for Policy, previously said that while “no one is a silver bullet,” the cluster munitions would enable Ukraine to “support the artillery battle for the foreseeable future.”
President Biden has wrestled for months with the decision to supply the weapons banned by many of America’s closest allies. They scatter small bombs around the battlefield that can cause serious injuries even decades after the end of fighting when civilians pick up duds.
Russia used these types of weapons in Ukraine for much of the war. Ukrainian troops have also used them, and President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine had pushed for more to flush out the Russians dug in trenches and block his country’s counter-offensive.
