Kiev's Use of Depleted Uranium Ammo May Cause Health Problems Akin to Yugoslavia and Iraq

On March 21, UK Minister for Defense Annabel Goldie told British lawmakers that London would grant a squadron of Challenger 2 main battle tanks to Kiev, as well as ammunition including armor-piercing rounds that contain depleted uranium. "Such rounds are highly effective in defeating modern tanks and armored vehicles," she bragged.

"The main feature of these shells is that they have a very high level of penetration. Depleted uranium provides a level of penetration that other shells do not," Konovalov told Sputnik. "I recall the history of the Yugoslav War; I worked there [at the time]. The Americans used depleted uranium in their air bombs."

In March 2000, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) confirmed to the United Nations that depleted uranium (DU) was used during the Kosovo conflict. NATO secretary-general at the time, Lord Robertson, told the international body that "DU rounds were used whenever the A-10 engaged armor during Operation Allied Force." It was used throughout Kosovo during approximately 100 missions with "a total of approximately 31,000 rounds" of DU ammo being used during NATO's bombings of Yugoslavia.

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"As far as we know, the people who were involved in this, including those on the American side, fell ill with oncological diseases, and in those areas where ammunition was used against Yugoslav cities, there were also outbreaks of oncological diseases. The Americans deny this; they say that it has nothing to do with it. But, nevertheless, the fact is obvious. At least we are witnessing that such ammunition caused outbreaks of cancer," Konovalov continued.

DU ammunition was also heavily used by US forces and their NATO allies in the 1991 Gulf War and the 2003 invasion of Iraq. Iraqi doctors and campaigners allege that the radioactive material contained in the munitions caused horrific birth defects and increased cancer rates. The US National Institutes of Health released a study in 2021 stating that the evidence gathered "suggests possible associations between exposure to depleted uranium and adverse health outcomes among the Iraqi population."