Section 1

After the Ukrainian army received the cluster bombs that the United States pledged to supply to support its counterattack to reclaim territories controlled by Moscow, Russian President Vladimir Putin reiterated that his country reserves the right to retaliate if the munitions are used against it.

Putin said in an interview on state television, excerpts from which were released on Sunday, that “Russia does not yet need to use cluster munitions, but if it is attacked by them, it will have the right to use them in response.”

He also added that “Russia has sufficient stocks of cluster munitions.”

He also added that the reason for the supply of cluster bombs to Kyiv is America’s lack of ammunition.

Radically changing (battlefield)

It is noteworthy that the US Joint Chiefs of Staff General Douglas Sims on Thursday confirmed the delivery of these munitions to Kyiv. He told reporters that “cluster munitions are now in Ukraine,” according to AFP.

In turn, the commander of the Ukrainian army, Alexander Tarnavsky, said in an interview with the American CNN channel: “We just received it and have not used it yet, but it is capable of radically changing (the battlefield).”

Tarnavsky added on Thursday that “the enemy also understands that once we get this munition, we will outnumber them,” explaining that Ukrainian forces will not use the munitions in densely populated areas.

He also added: “The Russians believe that we will use them on all sectors of the front … This is a mistake.”

for the first time

Notably, on July 7, the United States announced its decision to deliver cluster bombs to Ukraine for the first time since the beginning of the Russian military operation.

The decision, which US President Joe Biden said was “very difficult,” came as Kiev forces struggled to advance in a counteroffensive they launched a month ago to recapture Russian-held territories in eastern and southern Ukraine.

At the same time, Washington confirmed that it had received guarantees from Kyiv that these weapons, banned by a number of countries, would not be used against civilians.

Banned in many countries

Notably, the controversial weapon can disperse up to a hundred small explosive devices that can remain in the ground without detonating, posing a risk to civilians after the end of the conflict.

It is banned in many countries, especially in Europe, which signed the 2008 Oslo Accords and which Russia, the US or Ukraine have not joined.