Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-05-21-Speech-3-369"
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"en.20080521.25.3-369"2
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".
Mr President, this debate was long overdue. I am glad that we are holding it today. Depleted uranium is used by many countries, and especially Western countries, as ammunition in their wars because of its high penetrative power, especially against armoured vehicles. DU munitions, however, contain highly poisonous chemical substances – in other words they are toxic – and they are radioactive too. Depleted uranium is a by-product of the nuclear industry, resulting from the enrichment of uranium or the production of nuclear weapons. The use of nuclear energy, in short, is also part of the problem.
DU munitions have long-term effects. When a hard target is hit, depleted uranium is released at high temperatures and burns into depleted-uranium oxides, which take the form of a fine alpha-radioactive toxic dust that is easily inhaled and can be spread by wind and water. This dust is difficult to remove from the environment and is trapped in the lungs on inhalation. We know of the Gulf War syndrome and the Balkans syndrome; time and again the same phenomenon has been observable, with combatants evidently contracting cancers, such as lung cancer, because of their exposure to DU oxide. There have also been increases in the incidence of such cancers among the population of areas where these munitions have been used.
The interesting thing is that the military effectiveness of DU munitions is actually very limited, while their use entails numerous incalculable risks. NATO used DU munitions in its war of aggression against Yugoslavia. In Iraq the US forces have used a total of 300 tonnes of DU munitions. There is an increased percentage of deformed children in that country, especially in Baghdad. The Government of Afghanistan has now called for an inquiry into the use of DU munitions in Afghanistan and says that the US military did not inform it that DU munitions were being used, particularly in the eastern part of the country. DU munitions were used in the war in Lebanon, mainly by Israel, and they were also used very extensively in the first Gulf War. The figure of contaminated combatants has been put at 66 000.
The problem is plain to see. The first war pensions for the effects of depleted uranium have been awarded to veterans such as Kenny Duncan from the UK. If DU dust were a cosmetic product or a substance used in food production, for example, it would have been banned long ago. Troops are instructed to wear protective clothing when dealing with DU munitions. EUROMIL, the European Organisation of Military Associations, has been calling for a ban on weapons that fire these munitions. Belgium has banned DU munitions, and for that we congratulate it. The UN Disarmament and International Security Committee voted by 122 to 6, with 35 abstentions, to call for a report on the harmful effects of the use of armaments and ammunitions containing depleted uranium. The six votes against included those of the Czech Republic, France, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. What we need is a ban on the production and use of DU munitions."@en1
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