International- Ukraine's use of US cluster bombs is deterring Russian attacks, The Washington Post reported.
- The US decision to provide Ukraine with the weapon was controversial.
Ukraine says that controversial cluster munitions supplied by the US are proving important for stopping Russian attacks on its positions, The Washington Post reported.
President Joe Biden's decision to send the weapons to Ukraine in July attracted criticism, with allies including France, Germany, and Canada expressing concern over potential civilian casualties.
The weapons differ from normal munitions, which land and create a single explosion.
Cluster munitions break apart above their target, dispersing large numbers of small bombs over a wide area.
The smaller bombs often don't detonate properly, and can lie unexploded for years, posing a lasting threat to local populations.
Ukrainian officials told the Post that the weapons were having an important impact on the front line, helping to slow and deter Russian attacks.
"The main benefit is that the enemy is now very scared to go on assault," said Stanislav, a Ukrainian military official whom The Post identified only by his call sign for security reasons. "They even recognize the cluster bombs by the whistle they make when headed their way," Stanislav said.
When Biden agreed to Ukrainian requests for the weapons, analysts said their main use would be to help Ukraine break through Russia's formidable defenses as part of its counteroffensive.
The Post reported that they have been useful defensively too. While Ukraine is attacking, Russian troops can shelter in their trenches and avoid much of the damage. But if the Russians are advancing over open ground, then the weapons can be devastating.
Officials said the offensive use of the cluster munitions has been in pinning down Russian troops, meaning they stay sheltering as Ukraine advances. The Rand think tank said that the munitions were especially useful given that Ukraine's regular artillery stocks were badly depleted.
More than 100 countries are signatories to the the Convention on Cluster Munitions, which bans the use and stockpiling of the weapon. US allies like the UK, Germany and France have agreed not the use them, but the US, Ukraine and Russia are not signatories of the convention.
Both Ukraine and Russia have used the munitions during the Ukraine conflict, with Russia accused of using the weapons in attacks on civilian targets.