Written Question·Ministry of Defence·UIN 182936
Ukraine: Depleted Uranium
Tabled: 26 April 2023
Answered: 3 May 2023
Named DayQuestion
Afzal Khan
Labour — Manchester Rusholme
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of providing Ukraine with depleted uranium shells on radiation levels.
Answer
Depleted uranium rounds obviously have a high impact upon those in the target armoured vehicle. Beyond that the effects are limited, primarily to the remains of the targeted vehicle and some potential heavy metal contamination localised around the impact zone. Radiation from depleted uranium is not discernible from natural background radiation at impact sites.