US to send cluster munitions because Ukrainian counteroffensive ‘going slower than hoped’, says Pentagon - live
From 8m ago 20.07 BST US to send cluster munitions because Ukrainian counteroffensive 'going slower than hoped' Kahl says there are two primary reasons behind the decision to include cluster munitions in this latest weapons aid package to Ukraine. One is the “urgency of the moment”, he says. Ukraine is in the midst of its counteroffensive which has been difficult because the Russians had six months to dig into defensive belts in the east and the south. We want to make sure that the Ukrainians have sufficient artillery to keep them in the fight in the context of the current counter offensive, and because things are going a little slower than some had hoped.
5m ago 20.11 BST Secondly, Kahl says the US has substantially increased the production of 155m rounds, and that allies have also invested in their defense industrial base. But the reality is that “we’re going to need to build a bridge to the point at which that capacity is sufficient, on a month to month basis, to keep the Ukrainians in the artillery fight”, he says. He says he is “as concerned about the humanitarian circumstance" as anybody” but that the “worst thing for civilians and Ukraine is for Russia to win the war”.
8m ago 20.07 BST US to send cluster munitions because Ukrainian counteroffensive 'going slower than hoped' Kahl says there are two primary reasons behind the decision to include cluster munitions in this latest weapons aid package to Ukraine. One is the “urgency of the moment”, he says. Ukraine is in the midst of its counteroffensive which has been difficult because the Russians had six months to dig into defensive belts in the east and the south. We want to make sure that the Ukrainians have sufficient artillery to keep them in the fight in the context of the current counter offensive, and because things are going a little slower than some had hoped.
13m ago 20.02 BST The Ukrainian government has assured the US of the “responsible use” of DPICM, including that it will not use the rounds in civilian-populated urban environments, Kahl says. Ukraine has also committed to post-conflict mining “to mitigate any potential harm to civilians”, he says. He says Washington will work with Kyiv to “minimize the risks associated with the decision” to supply cluster munitions.
16m ago 19.59 BST Kahl says Russian forces have been using cluster munitions “indiscriminately” since the start of its war in Ukraine. By contrast, Ukraine is seeking DPICM rounds “in order to defend its own sovereign territory”. The US will be sending Ukraine its “most modern” dual-purpose improved conventional munition (DPICM) cluster munitions with “dud” rates to be under 2.35%, Kahl says. He compares that to the cluster munitions used by Russia across Ukraine, which he says has dud rates of between 30% and 40%.
23m ago 19.52 BST Pentagon announces new $800m military aid package to Ukraine, including cluster munitions The undersecretary of defense for policy, Colin H Kahl, is speaking at a press briefing at the Pentagon. The US will send a new weapons aid package worth about $800m, that will include 155m artillery rounds, including Dual-Purpose Improved Conventional Munitions, and 105mm artillery rounds. Also included in the new package are additional munitions for Patriot air defence systems and ammunition for High Mobility Artillery Rocket systems, additional Stryker armoured personnel carriers, precision aerial munitions, demolition munitions and systems for obstacle clearing and various spare parts and operational sustainment equipment.
Updated at 19.53 BST
28m ago 19.47 BST Sullivan said the decision to send cluster munitions was not an easy one. He said: It’s a difficult decision. It’s a decision we deferred. It’s a decision that required a real hard look at the potential harm to civilians. When we put all of that together, there was a unanimous recommendation from the national security team, and President Biden ultimately decided, in consultation with allies and partners and in consultation with members of Congress, to move forward on this strategy.
31m ago 19.45 BST Pentagon to hold briefing The Pentagon is due to hold a briefing in the next couple of minutes, where officials are expected to announce the US will send cluster munitions as part of a new weapons aid package to Ukraine.
40m ago 19.35 BST Joe Biden approved sending cluster munitions to Ukraine after 'unanimous' recommendation from security advisers Joe Biden approved sending cluster munitions to Ukraine after a “unanimous” recommendation from his national security team, Sullivan says. He says it was a “difficult” decision and that the president ultimately made the decision “in consultation with allies and partners and in consultation with members of Congress”.
Updated at 19.39 BST
49m ago 19.27 BST Russia’s use of cluster munitions in this conflict “is completely unacceptable on multiple counts”, Sullivan says. He says Russia has been using these weapons to attack a sovereign country, and to strike after civilian targets, in violation of international law. Crucially, there is a “big difference” between the type of cluster munition being used by Russia and the type that the US would provide to Ukraine, he says. He says Russia has already spread tens of millions of these weapons across Ukrainian territory, he says. We have to ask ourselves – is Ukraine’s use of cluster munitions on that same land actually, that much of an addition of civilian harm, given that that area is going to have to be de-mined regardless?
55m ago 19.20 BST Russia has been using cluster munitions since start of war, says White House Sullivan does not say whether the US will transfer cluster munitions to Ukraine, but he says it “will not leave Ukraine defenseless at any point in this conflict, period”. Russia has been using cluster munitions since the beginning of its invasion of Ukraine, he says. The bottom line is this: we recognize that cluster munitions create a risk of civilian harm from unexploded ordinance. This is why we deferred the decision for as long as we could. But there is also a massive risk of civilian harm if Russian troops and tanks roll over Ukrainian positions and take more Ukrainian territory and subjugate more Ukrainian civilians.
1h ago 19.17 BST National security adviser Jake Sullivan is addressing reporters at a White House briefing. He has not confirmed whether the US will send cluster munitions to Ukraine as part of a new weapons aid package. Instead, Sullivan says he will “leave it to the Pentagon to make a formal announcement later this afternoon for the next drawdown package”. The Pentagon is due to give its press briefing at 2.45pm EST.
Updated at 19.29 BST
1h ago 19.04 BST Congresswoman Betty McCollum of Minnesota has criticized the decision to transfer US cluster munitions to Ukraine, describing the move as “unnecessary and a terrible mistake”. Allowing cluster bombs on to the battlefield in Ukraine “undermines our moral authority and places the US in a position that directly contradicts 23 of our Nato allies”, the Democratic congresswoman said in a statement, referring to the 2008 treaty signed by more than 120 countries (but not the US, Ukraine or Russia). The legacy of cluster bombs “is misery, death, and expensive cleanup generations after their use”, the statement continues. The U.S. pays tens of millions of dollars annually to remove cluster munitions in Laos from the Vietnam era as these remnants of war continue to kill and maim civilians. As a strong supporter of the Biden administration’s policy in Ukraine, I must state in the strongest possible terms my absolute opposition to the U.S. transferring cluster munitions. These weapons should be eliminated from our stockpiles, not dumped in Ukraine.
1h ago 18.49 BST White House due to hold briefing amid expectations of a cluster munitions announcement The White House press briefing is expected to begin shortly at 2.00 pm eastern time, as many expect an announcement that the US may give Ukraine cluster munitions. We’ll be covering any announcement as it happens.
Updated at 19.00 BST
Source: The Guardian US
