2y ago

There is no legal reason the US can’t supply cluster bombs to Ukraine – but that doesn’t justify Biden's decision to do so

theconversation.com There is no legal reason the US can’t supply cluster bombs to Ukraine – but that doesn’t justify Biden's decision to do so

The US administration said that it had received ‘written assurances’ from Ukraine that it would use cluster bombs carefully. Nonetheless, the munition will provide an additional risk to civilians.

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Nope. You are wrong! https://www.hrw.org/news/2009/04/21/us-congress-bans-cluster-bomb-exports "new legislation signed into law by President Obama on March 11 permanently bans nearly all cluster bomb exports by the United States" It seems that export of such wepons is illigal by US law. The only exeption by that law will be un cluster bombs with less than 1% dud rate.
- doesn't apply here, unfortunately. that law was waived by Biden as part of the process here, and has previously been waived by Trump in other circumstances:
  A 2009 U.S. law bans exports of American cluster munitions with bomblet failure rates higher than 1%, which covers virtually all of the U.S. military stockpile. Biden waived prohibitions around the munitions, just as his predecessor Donald Trump did in 2021 to allow the export of cluster munitions technology to South Korea.
  
  Is that even a legitimate thing to do? Shouldn't he seek congress aproval for that? It is a law after all. It reminds me when Trump said he declassified all these documents he cought with just becaus he said so, but in reality he didn't go thought the official process to do so. I might also be wrong but currently it seems to me Biden is breaking a US law.
  
  If I recall the law itself allows the President to waive the restriction. So in effect exporting cluster munitions requires Presidential approval. Whereas the approval for export of weapons is generally delegated to others in the State Department.
  
  Ok. If that is correct then my mistake. I guess I didn't get that detail from my initial source. That makes me curious thought, who is being granted the approval from the president? Isn't the executive branch of the goverment who desides for the export in the first place?
  
  I think this page here will help you out with all that kind of information:
  https://www.state.gov/u-s-arms-sales-and-defense-trade
  It looks like the Bureau of Political-Military Affairs handle approvals in the State Department.

45 comments