UK sends thousands of Challenger tank shells to Ukraine, including depleted uranium ammunition
At the end of March, it became known that the Ukrainian Armed Forces would receive from the UK not only Challenger 2 tanks but also depleted uranium shells. It turned out that they had already been shipped.
Here's What We Know
The website of the United Kingdom's Parliament has published a response from the Minister for the Armed Forces, James Heappey, to a question about the transfer of depleted uranium shells to Ukraine. The minister said that the UK had provided the Ukrainian Armed Forces with thousands of ammunition for Challenger tanks.
This includes sub-calibre shells with cores made of depleted uranium to increase the armour-piercing effect. For operational security reasons, however, James Hippy declined to comment on their use by the Ukrainian Armed Forces. According to the minister, the tanks and shells are now under Ukrainian control and the UK has no control over their use.
In conclusion, we should add that in the middle of the last century Germany was the first to use depleted uranium due to a shortage of dense tungsten. Nowadays, Challenger 2, Abrams and Leopard 2 tanks can use depleted uranium projectiles.
