China News Network, March 3 According to foreign media reports on the 22st, the United Kingdom said that the ammunition it sent to Ukraine for main battle tanks will contain depleted uranium shells. Russian officials, including Russian President Vladimir Putin, condemned it.
According to Reuters, on the 20th local time, British Deputy Defense Secretary Annabelle Goldie said that some of the ammunition equipped with the "Challenger 2" main battle tank delivered to Ukraine contains depleted uranium armor-piercing shells.
Infographic: Russian President Vladimir Putin.
On the 21st, Putin condemned the British side's move. "If this happens, it will mean that Western countries have begun to use weapons with nuclear components in a joint way, and Russia will be forced to respond," he said. ”
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu also said that the British decision brings a potential "nuclear conflict" between Russia and Western countries closer and closer.
The British Ministry of Defense responded on the 21st that Russia was "deliberately spreading false news" and denied that depleted uranium bombs "have any relationship" with nuclear weapons and nuclear energy.
He added that independent research conducted by organisations such as the Royal Society suggests that the impact of depleted uranium munitions on personal health and the environment is likely to be minimal.
According to the Russian newspaper Izvestia, Russian chemical expert Oleg said that depleted uranium bombs will cause the formation of radioactive fallout after use and spread at the site of the explosion. Depleted uranium munitions are banned in international law.
At the regular press conference of the United Nations on the 21st, Farhan Haque, deputy spokesman of the United Nations Secretary-General, when asked about the "British delivery of depleted uranium bombs to Ukraine", said that in the past few years, the United Nations has expressed concern about any use of depleted uranium bombs and worried about its possible consequences.