According to the Kremlin, the United States bears responsibility for the consequences of the use of ammunition. Britain has already delivered ammunition containing depleted uranium to Ukraine.
On Wednesday, the United States announced the latest arms aid package to Ukraine. The value of the arms aid is about 175 million dollars, or about 163 million euros.
The weapons package includes, among other things, Abrams battle tanks. For the first time, the United States is also sending armor-piercing ammunition containing depleted uranium as their ammunition.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov says that the United States bears the responsibility for the consequences of shooting.
Such are the ammunition containing depleted uranium.
Why are such ammunition used?
Depleted uranium improves the penetration of projectiles, as uranium is a very dense metal.
When depleted uranium is added to the tip of projectiles, they can penetrate the shell of conventional armored vehicles.
Is their use common?
The United States and Britain developed depleted uranium munitions in the 1970s. Western countries used them in the Persian Gulf War in 1991, in Kosovo in 1999 and in Iraq in 2003.
Britain already confirmed in the springthat it too had supplied such munitions to Ukraine for use in Challenger 2 main battle tanks.
Is there a radiation hazard in them?
Depleted uranium is a by-product when uranium is processed for use in nuclear reactors or nuclear weapons.
The naturally occurring radioactive substance in uranium has been mostly, but not completely, removed in depleted uranium.
of the Radiation Protection Center depleted uranium emits alpha, beta and gamma radiation. However, there is very little information about the health effects.
How can exposure occur?
Soldiers may be exposed to uranium dust inside or in the immediate vicinity of a destroyed tank immediately after destruction.
Uranium dust is heavy, but can rise into the air through dusting of the earth’s surface and expose people living in the area. The soil can remain contaminated for a long time after use.
What can exposure cause?
Most international studies have not found that exposure to depleted uranium poses a serious health risk.
The radiation risk and cancer risk of depleted uranium are significantly lower than that of natural or enriched uranium, states STUK.
Environmental Pollution –according to a scientific publication In a study in Nasiriya, Iraq, the use of depleted uranium may have been linked to birth defects in newborn children after the Iraq war.
Are they legal to use?
No international arms treaty prohibits the use of ammunition containing depleted uranium.
There is, however non-governmental organization projectswhere ammunition containing depleted uranium is required to be banned.
AP, Reuters
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