THE White House has decided to provide cluster munitions to Ukraine and is expected to announce tonight that the Pentagon will send thousands of them as part of a new military aid package.

The new package to aid Ukraine in the war against Russia is said to be worth up to $800 million (£625m).

The decision flies in the face of widespread concern that the bombs cause numerous civilian casualties. The Pentagon says it will provide munitions that have a reduced “dud rate,” meaning fewer unexploded rounds that can result in unintended civilian deaths.

US officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the weapons will come from Pentagon stocks and will also include Bradley and Stryker armoured vehicles and an array of ammunition, such as rounds for howitzers and the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System, known as Himars.

Long sought by Ukraine, cluster bombs are weapons that open in the air, releasing submunitions, or “bomblets,” that disperse over a large area and are intended to destroy multiple targets at once.

Ukrainian officials have asked for the weapons to aid their much-hyped counteroffensive against Russia’s invasion forces.

US officials accuse Moscow’s troops of using cluster munitions on the battlefield and in populated civilian areas.

Asked how the cluster munitions, if approved, would help Ukraine, US Brigadier General Pat Ryder said that they can be loaded with charges able to penetrate armour and fragments, meaning that they can hit multiple personnel — “a capability that would be useful in any type of offensive operations.”

Proponents of a ban on cluster bombs point out that they kill indiscriminately and endanger civilians long after being fired. 

A convention banning the use of cluster bombs has been joined by more than 120 countries, which have agreed not to use, produce, transfer or stockpile the weapons and to clear them after use.

The United States, Russia and Ukraine are among the countries that have not signed the convention.