“Green Light” to Use of Depleted Uranium Weapons in Libya?
by International Coalition to Ban Uranium Weapons
Respondi
ng to a parliamentary question from UK Green Party leader
Caroline Lucas, the Defence Minister Dr Liam Fox has stated that it is
unlikely that the UK will use DU in the Libya conflict because they do
not foresee UK Challenger tanks being deployed. Challenger 2 tanks can
fire the UK’s only type of DU ammunition, the 120mm CHARM3 round.
Lucas also asked whether there had been discussions among the
coalition taking military action as to whether DU could be used. This
question was sidestepped with a claim that other nations are free to
choose whatever munitions they wish to engage armoured targets in Libya.
[52204] Caroline Lucas:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions he has had
with his counterparts in (a) the US Administration and (b) the
governments of other countries forming the coalition for military action
in Libya on policy on the use of depleted uranium weapons; and how that
policy (a) is applied to and (b) will apply in operations in Libya.
[51481] Dr Liam Fox: The
Government’s policy is that depleted uranium (DU) can be used within
weapons. It is not prohibited under current or likely future
international agreements. The UK’s armed forces use all munitions in
accordance with international humanitarian law. It would be quite wrong
to deny our serving personnel a legitimate and effective capability.The
only DU munition in service with our armed forces is the Charm 3
antitank round fired from the Challenger 2 tank. With no deployed ground
forces it follows that none of the weapons supplied to UK armed forces
for uses over Libya contain DU.Other nations may choose to use DU
munitions fired from aircraft guns against armoured targets if they have
that capability but that is a choice for them alone to make.
Global Research Editor’s Note: Consult the statements of the UK and the US indicated below. They
deny that DU are being used but they also state that NATO allies are
“free to use them”. Consult highlighted sections.
UK: allies free to use depleted uranium in Libya if they wish
UK Defence Minister Dr Liam Fox says UK use of DU in Libya unlikely but says that allies are free to use it if they wish to.
US denies depleted uranium use in Libya, but refuses to rule out future use
Air Force Spokeswoman claims that A-10s were not loaded with DU ammunition, but does not rule out future use in the conflict.
4 April 2011
A US Airforce Spokeswoman has told a Scottish journalist that, as of
2nd April, A-10s fighting in Libya have not been firing DU ammunition.
However, she refused to give any assurances about the future use of DU, stating that she didn’t want “to speculate on what may or may not be used in the future”.
Rob Edwards, a writer for the Sunday Herald, contacted Paula Kurtz,
Director of Public Affairs for the 17th US Air Force following ICBUW’s
updated statement on the situation in Libya and calls by campaigners for
the US to clarify the situation. Six A-10s have been deployed to Libya
from the 81st Fighter Squadron, 52nd Fighter Wing, which is part of the
17th Air Force. The A-10s are normally based in Spangdahlem Air Base,
Germany, but are currently operating out of Aviano Air Force Base in
Italy.
A-10 planes fire the 30mm PGU-14 Armour Piercing Incendiary DU round
from the GAU-8 rotary cannon fitted beneath the cockpit of the A-10. The
GAU-8 normally fires a mix of PGU-14 and PGU-13 High Explosive rounds,
which are pre-loaded on an ammunition belt before the plane flies. If
Kurtz’s statement is correct, then this is the first public
acknowledgement by the US that A-10s are being loaded with only PGU-13
rounds, although the practice has previously been identified in
photographs of A-10 units in Afghanistan.
During congressional hearings in the US last Thursday, Admiral Mike
Mullen suggested that the A-10 and AC-130 aircraft, which specialise in
attacking ground forces, would only be active for several more days. It
is still not known whether US Marines AV-8B Harriers in Libya have been
equipped with DU ammunition. US Marine Harriers have historically been
armed with the 20mm PGU-20/U Armour Piercing Incendiary round, and fired
11 tons of DU during the 1991 Gulf War. ICBUW has still not seen any
clear evidence that this round has been taken out of service, as some
reports have suggested.
If the A-10 has indeed been deployed to Libya without DU ammunition,
this is certainly good news, though the refusal to rule out future use
of DU in this conflict is clearly of concern. Any decision on whether to
deploy the A-10s with DU ammunition should be seen in terms of wider US
moves to phase out DU in medium calibre rounds, first reported by ICBUW
in January 2010. While the US has refused to cede ground publicly to
anti-DU campaigners, these moves are a tacit admission that the use of
DU is politically unacceptable, and that it’s properties are so unique
that alternatives cannot be found.
ICBUW calls for the US to give a categorical assurance, similar to
that given by UK Prime Minister David Cameron, that weapons containing
DU have no place in this conflict. A clear statement, covering both A-10
and AV-8B aircraft should be issued at the earliest opportunity.
If the US has taken a strategic decision not to equip US planes with
DU ammunition in this conflict, that is a progressive step. However, in
the absence of a public declaration that such a decision has been taken,
concerns will remain that the door has been left open for the future
use of DU in Libya.
ICBUW calls for the US to take steps in a clear and transparent
manner to assure the world that no US aircraft will go into the air
equipped with DU ammunition, and that pilots will not be cleared to fire
it. Any DU ammunition currently in theatre should be separated and left
unused.
As ICBUW has long maintained, DU has no place in conventional
munitions. The current position of the US affirms that position: if US
planes have been able to use alternatives, there is no reason why
alternatives should not be found for all ammunition containing DU. We
call for all current user states to remove these weapons from their
arsenals.
An urgent step to protect civilians in areas where DU weapons have
already been used, is for user states to share targeting data with the
authorities in affected states – a move endorsed by 148 states in the UN
General Assembly last December, and opposed by only four, including the
US, France and UK.
Global Research Articles by International Coalition to Ban Uranium Weapons
