US to give Ukraine cluster munitions in $800 million aid package

FILE PHOTO: Ukrainian military serviceman Igor Ovcharruck holds a defused cluster bomb from an MSLR missile, among a display of pieces of rockets used by Russian army, that a Ukrainian munitions expert said did not explode on impact, in the region of Kharkiv, Ukraine, October 21, 2022. REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States announced on Friday that it will send Ukraine cluster munitions - prohibited by more than 100 countries - as part of an $800 million security package, a move Ukraine said would have an "extraordinary psycho-emotional impact" on Russian forces.

Jake Sullivan, President Joe Biden's national security adviser, sought to make the case for providing these arms to Ukraine shortly before the Pentagon formally announced the aid. Cluster munitions could boost Ukraine's counteroffensive to reclaim territory seized since Russia invaded in February 2022.