Russian authorities will view the supply of projectiles with depleted uranium cores to Ukraine as the use of dirty nuclear bombs. This was expressed by Konstantin Gavrilov, head of the Russian delegation at the Vienna talks on military security and arms control issues, while speaking at the OSCE security cooperation forum, RIA Novosti reported.
“We know that the Leopard 2 tank, as well as the Bradley and Marder infantry fighting vehicles, are armed with uranium-core armor-piercing projectiles, the use of which led to the contamination of the region, as in Yugoslavia and Iraq.
“If such shells are supplied to Kiev for NATO’s heavy military equipment, we will consider it as the use of dirty nuclear bombs against Russia, with all the ensuing consequences,” he said.
He added that the Russian Federation “warned the Western sponsors of the Kyiv military machine to promote nuclear provocations and blackmail.”
Earlier, military expert Konstantin Sivkov told RIA Novosti that the supply of American M1 Abrams tanks and German Leopard 2 tanks to the Ukrainian Armed Forces “presents a threat to civilians” due to the depleted uranium shells used when firing from their guns.
“It should be clearly stated: as part of the ammunition of these tanks – American, British, French and German, by the way, as well as American and German infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) – there are armor-piercing sub-caliber shells. with depleted uranium cores,” said military doctor Sciences Sivkov.
He also expressed the opinion that the use of such shells on the territory of Russia “should be considered the use of dirty nuclear weapons.”
According to Sivkov, the US military used this ammunition during the invasion of Iraq.
“Creating huge areas that are dangerous to people’s lives.” According to the agency’s interlocutor, the use of uranium projectiles “creates extremely toxic and radioactive dust and collapses to the ground.”
He also noted that the use of such shells “is considered an act of nuclear attack on the territory of the Russian Federation.”
Depleted uranium is used in armor-piercing sub-caliber projectiles used to destroy armored vehicles. This munition was used during the bombing of Yugoslavia, Operation Desert Storm and the 2003 US invasion of Iraq. During “Desert Storm,” the US Armed Forces and its allies fired a total of about 782,000 of these rounds, The Guardian reported. During the bombing of Yugoslavia, the US military used more than 40,000 rounds of uranium, most of which were scattered throughout Bosnia and Kosovo.
International organizations do not consider depleted uranium core munitions as chemical or nuclear weapons. Their use is not regulated by any conventions and agreements and is not prohibited – because such weapons are “too new”.
Residual harm from their use during military operations is a controversial issue, with different perspectives on the consequences of using these bullets on the environment and human health.
Although uranium is highly toxic, unenriched it is no more dangerous than mercury or arsenic. The main danger of this type of uranium is dust released from ammunition, which decays over time and can, in theory, pollute the environment or poison a person.
The World Health Organization (WHO) claims that the maximum dose of radioactive exposure that a person can “catch” while inhaling depleted uranium particles can increase the risk of leukemia by 2%.
The United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) report claims that the Americans’ use of uranium shells in Yugoslavia “has no impact on the environment, population, or combatants.”
Italian environmental researchers examining soil samples in Bosnia and Kosovo confirmed a slight increase in uranium in the soil on the battlefield. But the pollution values did not exceed the permissible norms, and in general “we cannot speak of soil pollution.”
The use of chemical weapons by US troops during the Vietnam War caused an environmental disaster. However, in this case, various highly toxic reagents were sprayed over the forest from US Air Force aircraft. Vietnam’s mangrove forests have been almost completely burned and poisoned, with more than 60% of the forest poisoned. The United States was not using uranium core projectiles at that time.
The United Nations Research Institute on Disarmament argues that depleted uranium “does not meet the legal definitions of nuclear, radioactive, toxic, chemical or flammable weapons” because projectiles with a solid core that contain this substance are “not specifically designed to kill or kill.” injury by chemical or radioactive action.
At various times a number of anti-war activists have called for a ban on depleted uranium shells, the European Parliament supported these initiatives, but France and Britain at the UN Security Council each time blocked a possible ban.
It is also worth noting that, at least in Soviet times, depleted uranium core shells were created for armor-piercing shells of T-64, T-72, T-80 and T-90 tanks.
Russian aviation does not use uranium shells, reported in 2001 “Independent newspaper”. There is a state standard prohibiting the creation of such weapons.