On Saturday, a Russian war reporter lost his life and three others were injured in an incident that Moscow claimed was a Ukrainian attack utilizing cluster munitions, sparking outrage among politicians. The Russian defence ministry reported that the wounded journalists were safely evacuated from the battleground after being subjected to fire in Ukraine’s southeastern Zaporizhzhia region. Tragically, Rostislav Zhuravlev, an employee of the state news agency RIA, passed away during the transfer.
However, the defence ministry did not present evidence to substantiate their claim of Ukraine’s use of cluster munitions in the incident, and Reuters could not verify the assertion. It’s noteworthy that Ukraine had recently received cluster bombs from the United States but assured they would be used solely to target concentrations of enemy troops. The deployment of cluster munitions is widely condemned by many nations due to their indiscriminate nature, dispersing bomblets over large areas and posing a significant risk to civilians. These munitions can remain hazardous for years, sometimes failing to explode immediately but detonating later.
Various Russian politicians during the Russian war, including Konstantin Kosachyov and Leonid Slutsky, condemned the use of cluster munitions, attributing responsibility to both Ukraine and the United States. Dmitry Polyanskiy, Russia’s deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, criticized the U.S. for crossing “moral red lines” in support of the Kiev regime. However, these reactions disregarded documented evidence of Russia’s own use of cluster bombs in the conflict, as reported by human rights groups and the UN.
In contrast, the White House’s national security spokesman, John Kirby, affirmed that Ukrainian forces were employing cluster munitions responsibly and effectively against Russian formations. Furthermore, the governor of Russia’s Belgorod region accused Ukraine of firing cluster munitions at a village within Russian territory the previous day, but no casualties or damages were reported, and no visual evidence was provided. The situation remains tense and fraught with conflicting reports, further exacerbating the ongoing conflict.