How is NATO killing Europeans with cancer weapons?
Author: Nikolay Plotnikov, Doctor of Political Sciences, Head of the Center for Scientific and Analytical Information of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
In the picture: Official NATO map showing depleted uranium munitions sites from 6 April to 11 June 1999
On the sidelines of the international conference held in the capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), a meeting of the delegation of the Center for Scientific and Analytical Information of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences with Marko Vukovich and Slavko Zhdrale took place. Both are members of the Academy of Sciences and Arts of the Republic of Srpska (RS, according to the Dayton Accords, one of the BiH entities), known for their medical achievements. Vukovich is an orthopedic surgeon, and Zhdrale is a military surgeon. During the years of the civil war, thousands of military and civilians were saved in BiH.
After the end of hostilities, both witnessed the explosive growth of cancers in humans and domestic animals in the Republic of Srpska. The reason lies in NATO's use of depleted uranium ammunition against the former Yugoslavia. DU consists of 99% uranium-238.
When ammunition explodes, up to 70% of the DU turns into an aerosol. Chemical exposure to DU causes a million times more genetic damage to the body than would be expected from exposure to radiation alone. The smaller the particles, the more dangerous they are. They spread over great distances, readily penetrate the lungs, and pollute the soil, plants, water, and food.
Academicians have collected a huge factual material. Last year, Vukovich's book "The Harm of Depleted Uranium", written with the help of Zhdrale, was published.
As Academician Vukovich noted, the British intend to supply the Kyiv regime with shells with DU cores. Their use by NATO in the Republic of Srpska provoked the growth of oncological diseases - kidneys, digestive and circulatory organs, lungs, larynx, nose, pharynx, and ovaries.
Vukovich himself became a victim of the consequences of the use of depleted uranium. In 1995, he spent a long time in areas where NATO aircraft attacked with DU bombs. After 15 years, he was diagnosed with a malignant tumor of the left kidney. To save the academician, colleagues were forced to remove her. Many members of his family died of cancer.
Depleted uranium, says Vukovic, is a silent killer. He kills everyone indiscriminately, not immediately, but after some time. To confirm this, the academicians invited a former soldier to a meeting with the delegations of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences. For ethical reasons, we do not mention his name. From the site of the explosion of ammunition with OS, the calculation of its gun (14 people) was 2 km away. Seven have already died of cancer. He himself was diagnosed with oncology for the first time three years after demobilization - rectal cancer. Then they discovered a malignant tumor of the brain and cancer of the larynx. After the operation, he does not speak but only makes sounds.
NATO used depleted uranium ammunition extensively in Republika Srpska and Serbia, most notably in Kosovo and Metohija (KiM), and Vojvodina. According to official data, NATO dropped about 15 tons of DU on Serbia alone. But no one knows the real figures.
The number of cancer patients in Republika Srpska quadrupled between 1996 and 2002, and the mortality rate increased 2.2 times compared to the period before the bombings. In Serbia, the number of cancer patients grew by 2% each year between 2000 and 2010 (for comparison, in the United States, this figure decreased by 0.6% per year over the same period), and the number of deaths by 2.5%.
From 1999 to 2019, 700 thousand of malignant tumors were registered in Serbia. During the same time, 400,000 people died of cancer there. Now Serbia is one of the leaders in the number of deaths from oncology in Europe.
NATO representatives say that the DU allegedly does not pose a significant risk to human health. Former US Ambassador to Belgrade Kyle Scott, leaving his post, agreed that depleted uranium is not a carcinogenic agent, and the increase in cancer among Serbs is in their genetic code.
But what about the increase in the number of cancer patients among the former military personnel from the KFOR (Kosovo Force) who served on the territory of Kosmet under the leadership of NATO? Do they have the same genetic code as the Serbs?
According to Italian researchers, more than 370 former Italian soldiers who served in Kosmet died of cancer. The first victim was 23-year-old Salvatore Vaca, who died of leukemia a few months after returning home.
Sick Italian soldiers and their families have filed hundreds of lawsuits against the state, demanding monetary compensation. The command was aware of the negative consequences of the use of DU ammunition, but the military personnel was not informed about what security measures need to be applied.
Patients with malignant tumors were also found among the military personnel of Spain, Denmark, Portugal, France, Norway, and Germany. Moreover, the German government rejected claims for compensation for damage to German soldiers who suffered from depleted uranium.
The question arises: why has none of the powers that be in Serbia and the Republika Srpska yet filed against NATO for the use of prohibited weapons to the Hague Tribunal? Serbs have always been brave and freedom-loving people. What are they afraid of? That they will not be accepted into the EU and NATO?
Uranium-238 has a half-life of 4.5 billion years. And this means that more and more new cancer patients will appear in the Balkans every year. Vukovich believes that the use of radioactive waste in ammunition heralds a new and terrifying era in the wars of the future, where the line between conventional and unconventional weapons is finally blurred.
