US Agrees to Send Controversial , Uranium Tank Rounds to Ukraine.<br />Fox News reports that the United States <br />has agreed to send depleted uranium <br />anti-tank rounds to support Ukraine. .<br />The news coms after the United Kingdom agreed <br />to send the controversial munitions to aid Kyiv's <br />counteroffensive against occupying Russian forces.<br />Fox News reports that the 120 mm rounds are <br />munitions for the 31 MIAI Abrams tanks the<br />U.S. has pledged to deliver to Ukraine this fall. .<br />The armor-piercing rounds were <br />first developed by the U.S. amid the <br />Cold War to counter Soviet tanks.<br />The depleted uranium used in the rounds <br />is a byproduct of the uranium enrichment <br />process necessary for creating nuclear weapons. .<br />According to RAND nuclear expert and policy researcher <br />Edward Geist, while the rounds retain some radioactive <br />properties, they cannot generate a nuclear reaction.<br />Depleted uranium is extremely dense, <br />which adds to its potency as a projectile. .<br />It’s so dense and it’s got so much <br />momentum that it just keeps going <br />through the armor — and it heats it <br />up so much that it catches on fire, Edward Geist, RAND nuclear expert and policy researcher, via Fox News .<br />In March, the U.K.'s announcement <br />that it would send depleted uranium rounds <br />was met with a Russian warning that doing so<br />would open the door to further escalation.<br />Fox News reports that Russian President <br />Vladimir Putin has already suggested that the war could <br />be escalated to the deployment of nuclear weapons.<br />Fox News reports that Russian President <br />Vladimir Putin has already suggested that the war could <br />be escalated to the deployment of nuclear weapons
