this post was submitted on 09 Jul 2023
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Explain Like I'm Five

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ELI5: How are unexploded cluster munitions not a solved problem? (pawb.social)
submitted 1 year ago by KoboldCoterie@pawb.social to c/explainlikeimfive@lemmy.world
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I really don't have a lot of background on cluster munitions; it only really came into my perception in response to the controversy over the US providing them to Ukraine. As I understand it, the controversy is because they often don't all explode reliably, and unexploded munitions can then explode months or years later when civilians are occupying the territory, making it similar to the problems caused by landmines.

In an age where things like location trackers, radio transmitters, and other such local and long-range technology to locate objects are common place, what's stopping the manufacturers of these munitions from simply putting some kind of device to facilitate tracking inside each individual explosive, to assist with detection and safe retrieval after a conflict? I get that nothing is a 100% effective solution, but it seems like it'd solve most of it.

Can someone with actual knowledge explain why this is still a problem we're having?

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[โ€“] fubo@lemmy.world 5 points 1 year ago

If the bomb-makers could make any sort of bomb they wanted, they would not make a bomb that lies around unexploded. They want that bomb to blow up the enemy and the enemy's stuff, not sit around waiting for some noncombatant kid to pick it up weeks or years later. If it does not blow up in a timely fashion, it is not doing the job of a weapon in Western military doctrine โ€” which is to stop the enemy from being able to continue to wage war.

The goals of "stop the enemy" and "don't blow up some kid weeks or years later" are both met by making the bomb more reliable at blowing up right away. So they probably focus on that, not on adding extra bells & whistles that could potentially be used by the enemy to avoid being blown up.