Turkey Has Supplied Ukraine With US-Designed Cluster Bombs Since November 2022 - Reports

Turkey has been supplying Ukraine with US-designed artillery-fired cluster bombs since November 2022, Foreign Policy reported citing former US and EU officials.

The Cold War-era munitions gave Ukraine a controversial weapon in the conflict with Russia on the battlefield, it said.

The bombs, designed to destroy tanks by bursting into smaller submunitions, can linger on the battlefield for years if they fail to explode immediately, with each round scattering about 88 bomblets.

"After the U.S. denied (Ukraine) access to cluster munitions, Turkey was the only place they could get them. It just shows how even as Turkey cozies up to Russia in some respects, it's become a really important supporter for Ukraine militarily," a source briefed on the matter, who declined to be identified, told the US news publication.