The Pentagon: Washington won’t follow Britain in supplying munitions containing uranium to Ukraine

Pentagon spokesman, Patrick Ryder, announced on Tuesday, that the United States won’t follow the example of Britain in delivering munitions containing uranium to Ukraine.

“As far as I know, no,” Ryder said during a press briefing in response to a question about whether Washington would provide this type of munitions to Kiev.

Russian President Vladimir Putin had warned that Russia would be forced to respond if the West began supplying Ukraine with weapons with a nuclear component.

“I’d like to note in this regard that if this use of weapons with a nuclear component happens, Russia will be forced to respond accordingly, taking into account, the collective West has already begun to use weapons with a nuclear component.

Earlier, British Deputy Defense Secretary Annabelle Goldie said that Britain would transfer depleted uranium ammunition to Ukraine.

In the same context, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, commenting on Britain’s plans to supply Ukraine with depleted uranium missiles, that Britain is ready not only to bear the risks of this operation, but to violate international humanitarian law as was the case in 1999 in Yugoslavia, and many other things, which they allow themselves, including war crimes and crimes against humanity.

On the other hand, the US Department of Defense confirmed on Tuesday that the United States will deliver Abrams tanks to Ukraine by the fall, at a much faster pace than expected, and will also send Patriot air defense systems according to an accelerated schedule.

Pentagon spokesman General Pat Ryder told reporters that Washington had taken, in coordination with Kiev, a decision to send M1-A1 Abrams tanks.

“This will allow us to significantly accelerate delivery times and deliver these important capabilities to Ukraine by the fall of this year,” he added.

Pentagon spokesman confirmed that the tanks would give Ukraine a capability very similar to the M1-A2, which Washington initially planned to send, but refused to go into details of the differences between the two models.

General Ryder explained that it would have taken more than a year to provide the M1-A2 tanks.

Ukraine will also receive advanced Patriot air defense systems earlier than planned.

“We’re confident that we will be able to deliver the Patriot systems on an accelerated schedule,” said Ryder, noting that the Ukrainians are training on the system faster than expected, given their willingness and enthusiasm to carry out the training.

The United States is leading an international campaign to help Ukraine, having immediately formed a coalition of dozens of countries to support Kiev since the start of the Russian invasion in February 2022.