While the US has officially announced that it is sending cluster bombs to Ukraine, which have low accuracy and are highly controversial, Kyiv undertakes to adhere to five principles for the use of these munitions, in particular not to use them in cities and on the territory of Russia, and also monitor the affected areas, reports Ukrainian Pravdareferring to the Minister of Defense of Ukraine Oleksiy Reznikov.

The United States announced on Friday that it would supply Ukraine with widely banned cluster munitions for a counteroffensive against Russian occupation forces.

Human rights groups and the United Nations secretary-general have questioned Washington’s decision to send the munitions, part of an $800 million package of security measures that brings total U.S. military aid to more than $40 billion for Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine .

Name five Ukrainian principles of using cluster munitions

“Regarding cluster munitions, we have 5 key principles that we will adhere to and that we have clearly communicated to all our partners, including the US. We personally informed our American partners about these five principles in writing a long time ago,” Reznikov wrote on Twitter.

• The first principle provides that Ukraine will use these munitions only to liberate its internationally recognized territories.
• These munitions will not be used on the officially recognized territory of Russia.
• The armed forces undertake not to use cluster munitions in cities.
• Cluster munitions will be used only in those areas where the Russian army is concentrated, to break through the lines of Russian defense.
• Ukraine will keep strict records of the use of these weapons and the local territories where they will be used. Based on these records, these areas will be prioritized for demining after our territories are liberated and we are victorious. Ukraine will report to its partners on the use and effectiveness of these munitions.

Why cluster bombs are banned by more than 100 countries

Cluster bombs are banned in more than 100 countries. They usually drop large numbers of smaller bombs that can kill over a large area, and those that don’t explode remain dangerous decades after the conflict ends.

“Ukraine has given written assurances that it will use them very carefully” to minimize risks to civilians, Sullivan said.

Human rights groups oppose Washington’s decision, but the munitions could give impetus to Ukraine’s counteroffensive to retake territory captured by Russian forces after their February 2022 invasion.

Cluster bombs (BASMs) consist of a shell-like container containing smaller explosive projectiles called submunitions. With very low accuracy, they can hit many civilians.

Their use and transfer is prohibited by the Oslo Convention of 2008, signed by a large part of Western countries.

Even the Americans recognize the risk of these bombs

A 2009 law bans the export of U.S. cluster munitions with explosive rejections greater than 1%, covering virtually all U.S. military stockpiles. Biden could lift the ban on these munitions, as US President Donald Trump did in January 2021, to allow the export of cluster munition technology to South Korea.

According to the International Committee of the Red Cross, some cluster munitions fail to explode 40% of the time.

“It was a very difficult decision for me. And, by the way, we discussed this with our allies,” said President Joe Biden in an interview with CNN, adding: “The Ukrainians are running out of ammunition.”

“We recognize that cluster munitions pose a risk of harm to civilians from unexploded ordnance,” said Biden administration national security adviser Jake Sullivan. “So I put off the decision as long as I could.”

“But there is also a huge risk of civilian harm if Russian troops and tanks take over Ukrainian positions and take over more Ukrainian territory and subjugate more Ukrainian civilians because Ukraine does not have enough artillery,” he said.

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