The British Ministry of Defense this Tuesday accused the Russian government of “disinformation” by saying that the depleted uranium ammunition it will send to Ukraine along with a squadron of tanks has a nuclear component.
A spokesman for this ministry stressed that “the British Army has been using depleted uranium in its armour-piercing projectiles for decades” and pointed out that “it is a standard component and has nothing to do with nuclear weapons or capabilities”.
“Russia knows this, but deliberately tries to misinform”he underlined.
UK Defense has confirmed that, along with a squadron of Challenger 2 main battle tanks, it will supply Ukraine with “ammunition, including armour-piercing shells containing depleted uranium”.
These projectiles “are very effective at neutralizing tanks and other modern armored vehicles,” the same source explains.
The Ministry of Defense spokesman added that several scientific studies believed that “any impact on human health and the environment from the use of depleted uranium munitions was likely to be minor”.
A former British Army commander and chemical weapons expert, Colonel Hamish van Breton-Gordon, said in an interview with the BBC channel that the bullets used by Challenger 2 contained only “traces” of depleted uranium.
This military considered it “anecdotal” to suggest that these munitions are somehow related to nuclear weapons, which use enriched uranium.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that London’s plans to supply Ukraine with depleted uranium ammunition will only bolster Russia’s response, in an almost immediate response to statements by a British official.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova also reacted immediately, condemning the British government’s plan, which she said would encourage “a Yugoslav scenario”.
“These materials not only kill, but also infect the environment and cause cancer in the people living on these lands”he claimed in a post on his Telegram account.
“It is naive to think that these weapons will only inflict casualties against whom they were used. In Yugoslavia, the NATO military, especially the Italians, were the first to suffer”he underlined.
The military offensive launched by Russia in Ukraine on February 24, 2022 has so far led to the flight of more than 14.6 million people – 6.5 million internally displaced persons and more than 8.1 million to European countries – according to the latest data from the UN, which classifies this refugee crisis as the worst in Europe since World War II (1939-1945).
At the moment, at least 18 million Ukrainians need humanitarian aid and 9.3 million people need food aid and shelter.
The Russian invasion – justified by the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, with the need to “denazify” and demilitarize Ukraine for Russia’s security – was condemned by the international community at large, which responded by sending weapons to Ukraine and Russia to impose political and economic sanctions.
The UN presented as confirmed 8,317 civilian deaths and 13,892 wounded since the start of the war, underlining that these numbers are far below the actual ones.
Source: DN
