Germany criticises Ukraine's request for cluster munitions and phosphorus bombs

Anton Hofreiter, Green faction member of the German Bundestag, has criticised Ukraine’s request for cluster munitions and phosphorus bombs.

Source: European Pravda, quoting Tagesschau

Details: "Ukraine is asking for everything. I think this request is not right," said Hofreiter, who is the chairman of the Committee on European Affairs of the German Bundestag. When asked if that was where Ukraine’s allies had to draw a line, he agreed.

Hofreiter said that he believes it was an "unreasonable request" born out of desperation.

"Because what was promised has not been fully realised; Leopard 2 [tanks] are a good example of that," he noted. Germany, Poland and Portugal promised to give Ukraine Leopard 2 main battle tanks, but German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s promise to supply enough tanks for two battalions cannot currently be fulfilled because many countries that initially supported supplying tanks to Ukraine have since held back.

During the Munich Security Conference, Ukraine’s Vice Prime Minister Oleksandr Kubrakov has called for Ukraine’s allies to supply cluster munitions and phosphorus bombs. Using either type of munitions is controversial and cluster munitions are banned by international law.

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said during the Munich Security Conference on Saturday that if Ukraine is given cluster munitions, its Armed Forces will only deploy those munitions against the Russian army.

"We have evidence that the Russian Federation is using cluster munitions. We understand that [the use of] these munitions is a controversial issue, globally. We are not party to the convention that prohibits the use of cluster munitions. So there are no legal obstacles. And if we obtain those munitions, they will be used exclusively against the Russian military forces," Kuleba said.

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