Vladimir Putin is accused of using a high-power thermobaric weapon, dubbed ‘the father of all bombs’, in Ukraine – which contravenes the terms of the Geneva convention
By Benedict Tetzlaff-Deas
Russian President Vladimir Putin has used a deadly “vacuum bomb” in Ukraine, according to an ambassador.
The bomb is said to be a high-power thermobaric weapon, which contravenes the terms of the Geneva convention.
Oksana Markarova, Ukraine’s ambassador to the United States, said after a meeting with members of the U.S. Congress: “They used the vacuum bomb today, which is actually prohibited by the Geneva convention.
“The devastation that Russia is trying to inflict on Ukraine is large.”
It comes after fears grew among officials in the West that Russia would begin use of the devastating weapon, which can vaporise bodies and crush internal organs, as progress by troops on the ground moves slower than expected.
The explosive is also known as a ‘vacuum bomb’, as it uses the atmosphere as part of its explosion.
It is among the most powerful non-nuclear weapons ever developed, and is estimated to be about four times as powerful as America’s MOAB thermobaric weapon used to devastating effect against ISIS forces in Afghanistan.
Thermobaric weapons were developed by both the US and the Soviet Union in the 1960s, and in September 2007 Russia detonated the largest one ever made — alerting Western forces to the breadth of the nation’s arsenal.
An unnamed official said: “My fear would be that if they don’t meet their timescale and objectives they would be indiscriminate in their use of violence.
“They don’t adhere to the same principles of necessity and proportionality and rule of law that Western forces do.”
Other weapons understood to be at Putin’s disposal include nightmare so-called ‘war toys’ such as invisible drones and attack dogs.
