Turkey supplies Ukraine with cluster artillery munitions made during the Cold War. Foreign Policy writes about this, citing European and American ex-officials familiar with this issue.
According to the publication, the supply of dual-purpose advanced conventional ammunition (DPICM) began in November 2022, but Turkey tried to hide this fact. They were made under an agreement with the United States. According to one FP source, the move indicates that Turkey is becoming an important supporter of Ukraine, despite ties to Russia. At the same time, it remains unclear whether Ukraine used the received ammunition in combat.
DPICM cluster munitions can be used with standard artillery pieces. They are 5-10 times more deadly than the standard high-explosive fragmentation shells previously supplied to Ukraine by the United States. Cluster shells can also help Ukraine with the destruction of Russian barriers in the Donbass. However, their main disadvantage is that after being fired, many charges do not explode and scatter over a large area. This may pose a danger to the civilian population for many years after the war.
“For every fourth artillery shot, you kill someone. I think that DPICM will probably show 20 times more efficiency. Thus, for every shot, Ukraine will have 10 Russians killed,” said Dan Rice, special adviser to the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine Valery Zaluzhny.
The use of cluster munitions is prohibited by the 2010 Convention, which has been signed by more than a hundred countries. However, Ukraine, Turkey, Russia and the United States did not join it. CNN previously reported that Ukraine had requested cluster munitions from the United States. According to the channel, the US authorities have been considering “one of the most controversial requests” for several months and still have not rejected it.
