The U.S. has announced it is sending depleted uranium anti-tank rounds to Ukraine, following Britain’s lead in sending the controversial munitions to help Kyiv push through Russian lines in its grueling counteroffensive.

AP

    • Dad2DnA@lemmy.world
      12·
      1 year ago

      That is just wrong, it certainly is radioactive, just not capable of going critical, which would define it as a “nuclear weapon”. Depleted uranium emits radiation, albeit at low levels, therefore it is radioactive

      • Fosheze@lemmy.worldEnglish
        23·
        1 year ago

        Depleted uranium is far more hazardous because it’s a heavy metal than because it’s still very slightly radioactive. It’s an alpha emitter so the radiation won’t penetrate your skin. You can handle DU constantly and not have any issues unless you breathe it in or swallow it at which point the primary concern is going to be acute heavy metal poisoning, not the cancer it may or may not cause several years down the road.

        • Endorkend@kbin.social
          6·
          1 year ago

          Neither of those effects are something you want spread all over a country that supplies a crapload of the worlds grain and other agricultural products.

          • AA5B@lemmy.world
            2·
            1 year ago

            Even worse, Ukraine will be spreading g it around their own country. While I realize it’s a fight for survival against aggression and support giving them all the help they need, it’s horrifying what it’s doing to them and their country

      • remotelove@lemmy.ca
        8·
        1 year ago

        Alpha particles. If you snort a bunch of DU dust, that would be bad since the same cells would be constantly exposed for a long time.

        If anyone is curious about the prevalence of different types of radiation, go on YouTube and look for videos of cloud chambers. Cool stuff.

  • AutoTL;DR@lemmings.worldBEnglish
    6·
    1 year ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:

    When Britain announced in March it was sending Ukraine the depleted uranium rounds, Russia falsely claimed they have nuclear components and warned that their use would open the door to further escalation.

    In March, Putin warned that Moscow would “respond accordingly, given that the collective West is starting to use weapons with a ‘nuclear component.’” And Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said the munitions were “a step toward accelerating escalation.”

    The U.S. military “has procured, stored, and used depleted uranium rounds for several decades, since these are a longstanding element of some conventional munitions,” Pentagon spokesman Marine Corps Lt. Col. Garron Garn said in a statement in March in response to a query from The Associated Press.

    U.S. troops have questioned whether some of the ailments they now face were caused by inhaling or being exposed to fragments after a munition was fired or their tanks were struck, damaging uranium-enhanced armor.

    In a social media post on Telegram, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova slammed the U.S. decision to give Ukraine the munitions, writing, “What is this: a lie or stupidity?” She said an increase in cancer has been noted in places where ammunition with depleted uranium was used.

    Associated Press writers Lolita C. Baldor and Aamer Madhani in Washington, Frank Jordans in Berlin and Menelaos Hadjicostis in Nicosia, Cyprus, contributed to this report.

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