Pentagon’s defense of cluster munition use by Ukraine is ‘cynicism’ – Russia
Attempts by US officials to portray Ukraine’s use of controversial cluster munitions as appropriate and legitimate are shameless and outrageous, Anatoly Antonov, the Russian ambassador to the US, said on Thursday.
In a statement on Telegram, Antonov commented on remarks by Pentagon Press Secretary Pat Ryder, who said the US has “all indications” that Ukraine is “properly” employing cluster munitions, which are banned in more than 100 countries because of the dangers they pose to civilians – just as Kiev had promised.
“I would like to know whether ‘the proper use’ of cluster bombs is also true for the assassination of Russian journalist Rostislav Zhuravlev,” Antonov said, noting that the reporter, who worked for RIA Novosti, was killed in Ukrainian shelling involving this type of weapon. The attack, which took place on July 22, also wounded three other Russian journalists.
“Is there any limit to the cynicism of the Pentagon functionaries who make such statements?” he asked.
Antonov went on to say that “Ukrainian terrorists” that are armed by the West orchestrated the assassinations of several high-profile Russian figures and are responsible for the deaths of hundreds of children.
He added that Kiev has regularly shelled residential areas, staged “terrorist attacks” on the Crimean Bridge and civilian ships, and was behind the destruction of the Kakhovka Hydroelectric Power Plant on the Dnieper River in June, and recurring strikes on the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant, the largest facility of its kind in Europe.
“Responsibility for all this lawlessness lies with both Kiev and Washington,” Antonov said.
US President Joe Biden approved the delivery of cluster munitions to Ukraine last month, portraying it as a stopgap measure as Ukraine and its Western backers struggle to replenish their arsenals.
The move sparked backlash not only from Russian President Vladimir Putin, who called it a “crime,” but also from US allies.
Cluster munitions pose a serious threat to civilians because when they explode, they release a large number of bomblets across a wide area which often fail to detonate and remain dangerous for many years.
Though Kiev has promised not to use them in urban environments, while keeping records of where they use them, Moscow has cast doubt on Ukraine’s ability to fulfill this pledge.
