Cluster bombs placed on the ground on March 23, Ukraine/Andre Luis Alves/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images/FILE
2023.07.12 Wed posted at 10:23 JST
(CNN) Russia’s Defense Minister Shoigu has threatened to retaliate if the United States goes ahead with plans to supply Ukraine with cluster munitions.
“If the United States supplies Ukraine with cluster munitions, Russia will have no choice but to take countermeasures,” Shoigu said, according to Russian TV channel Channel 5.
Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, deputy chairman of the National Security Council, said on social media Telegram that there was information that Ukraine had already used cluster munitions in southern Tokmok.
Tokmak is a town near the front line in the southern Zaporizhzhya province.
Russian military bloggers have also claimed that the Ukrainian military is already using cluster munitions. However, neither Ukraine nor the United States have said cluster munitions have already been deployed.
The White House said on Thursday that President Biden’s decision to send cluster bombs to Ukraine was “temporary.”
The Russian embassy in Washington said in a statement late Wednesday that the United States was “virtually” acknowledging war crimes by supplying Ukraine with cluster munitions.
Last week, after months of discussions within the administration, the United States announced it would provide cluster bombs to Ukraine as part of a new military aid package. Cluster munitions are a controversial weapon banned by more than 100 countries, including key U.S. allies.
Both sides have used cluster munitions in the Ukraine war since Russia’s February 2022 invasion. The Ukrainian military recently started using cluster munitions supplied by Turkey.
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2023-07-12 01:23:00
