Putin calls the delivery of cluster bombs to Ukraine "criminal" and warns of a "reciprocal" response to their use

He affirms that Russia will study the Western military equipment captured in the framework of the invasion

The president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, has branded this Sunday as "criminal" the delivery of cluster bombs to Ukraine and has stressed that, although Moscow "has not used them for now", it reserves the right to "act reciprocal" in case Kiev uses them in the framework of the war unleashed in February 2022.

"The use of cluster bombs was described as a crime by the US Administration itself. I believe that this is how it should be treated," Putin said in an interview with the Russian television channel Rossiya 1

"I want to say that Russia has sufficient supplies of various types of cluster munitions. Until now we have not, we have not used them and we have not had this need, despite the well-known shortages for a certain period of time," he said. , according to the Russian news agency Interfax.

Thus, he has emphasized that "if they use them (against Russian forces)", Moscow "reserves the right to reciprocal responses", before arguing that the delivery of cluster munitions to Kiev stems from the fact that "they suffer a shortage of ammunition, in general".

"Let me remember that the Ukrainian Army spends between 5,000 and 6,000 155-caliber shells every day of hostilities, while the United States produces 15,000 of these shells a month," he argued. "They do not have enough and Europe no longer has enough, but they did not find anything better to propose the use of cluster bombs," he concluded.

US President Joe Biden last week defended the decision to deliver cluster bombs to Ukraine because it is necessary for Kiev's war effort and because "this war is about ammunition." "This is a war that is about ammunition and they are running out of that ammunition," he said.

For his part, the commander of the Tavria Joint Forces Operation, Oleksander Tarnavski, said on Wednesday that the Ukrainian Army has already received the cluster bombs promised by the United States Administration and, although he clarified that they have not yet used, they could "radically change" the course of the war.

The United States, Ukraine and Russia have not signed the convention to ban these bombs, which explode on a target, scattering a large number of smaller explosives. A large part does not explode but remains a threat for years.

"REVERSE ENGINEERING"

On the other hand, Putin has affirmed that the Russian authorities will submit to study the Western military equipment captured in the framework of the invasion with a view to its possible use by the Russian Armed Forces, as reported by the Russian news agency TASS.

"There is an expression for reverse engineering. We will see, because modern technology is modern," said the Russian president. "If there is an opportunity to analyze it and see if there is something that can be applied, why not?" He asked himself.

Along these lines, he has praised the use of advanced technology by the Russian forces and added that "it is very effective", including the T-90 tank. "It is the best tank in the world, without exaggeration, but the enemy also produces modern equipment", he has settled.