LONDON/MOSCOW: If the UK sends controversial shells containing depleted uranium to Ukraine, it will set a bad precedent for the conflict, which could also mean an escalation in weapon supplies, Chinese experts said, warning of long-term harmful effects on the environment and people’s health. This move shows that the West does not care about either Ukrainians or Russians as they use “the blood of Ukrainians to weaken Russia by all means,” experts said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Moscow would be “forced to respond” if the UK government is supplying Ukraine with armor-piercing tank shells containing depleted uranium following a written response by a UK defense minister who was asked whether any of ammunition currently being supplied to Ukraine contains depleted uranium, according to media reports.
The Ministry of Defense of the UK said that such material is standard for rounds and has nothing to do with nuclear weapons. Those armor-piercing shells containing such material for use with its Challenger 2 battle tanks have a low risk of radiation, media reports said. In history, NATO led by the US has used depleted uranium bombs many times, which caused not only a long-term impact on the environment but also a long-term harm to human body, and the uranium powder released by it caused serious pollution to the environment, Chinese experts said.
A resolution adopted by the UN in December 2022 takes into account the potential harmful effects of the use of armaments and ammunitions containing depleted uranium on human health and the environment, and noted that further research should be done to assess the health risks and environmental impact of the use of arms and ammunitions containing depleted uranium in conflict situations.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu was quoted as saying in media reports that the British decision left fewer and fewer steps before a potential “nuclear collision” between Russia and the West. He also mentioned that NATO had already used such munitions in Kosovo and Serbia, where they massively, without any sanctions… bombarded peaceful cities and destroyed bridges.
The UK’s move set a very bad precedent as depleted uranium bombs have been resisted by many countries given its harm not only to soldiers but also to civilians nearby, making post-war reconstruction much more difficult, Cui Heng, an assistant research fellow from the Center for Russian Studies of East China Normal University, told the Global Times on Wednesday.
“It also means Western supplies to Ukraine being further escalated,” he said, noting that Russia will surely react resolutely to such escalation.
On the 23rd anniversary of the end of NATO’s 78-day bombing of Yugoslavia in June 2022, the Chinese Foreign Ministry urged the US and NATO to reflect on their war crimes and give a reasonable explanation and compensation to the victims of depleted uranium bombs. Some 3,000 victims of depleted uranium bombs entrusted an international team of lawyers to file a lawsuit against NATO for the bad impact of the 15-ton depleted uranium bombs dropped by NATO.
–The Daily Mail-Global Times exchage item
