US President Joe Biden Approves Delivery Of Anti-personnel Mines To Ukraine

Ukrainian military illustration. (Wikimedia Commons/Stafff. Adriana Diaz-Brown)

JAKARTA - President Joe Biden has approved the provision of anti-personnel landmines for Ukraine, a US official told Reuters, a move that could help slow Russia's progress in its eastern region, especially if it is used together with other ammunition from the United States.

The United States expects Ukraine to use mines in its own territory, although it has committed not to use them in areas inhabited by its own civilians, the official said.

The Washington Post first reported on the progress.

The United States has provided antitank mines for Ukraine during its war with Russia, but the addition of antipersonnel mines aims to weaken the progress of Russian ground forces, the official added, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

US mines are different from Russian mines because they are "unsustainable" and become inactive after a certain period of time, the official said.

The mine needs a battery to explode, and it won't explode after the battery runs out.

Meanwhile, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky's Office, Ukraine's Ministry of Defense, Russia's Ministry of Defense, and the Kremlin did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

On Tuesday, Ukraine used US ATACMS missiles to attack Russian territory, utilizing a newly granted permit by President Biden's governing government that would step down.

In response, Moscow said the use of ATACMS, the furthest distance missile Washington has ever supplied to Ukraine, was a clear signal that the West wanted to increase conflict.