Mohr: Citizens should be concerned, at least 10 tons of depleted uranium thrown in Kosovo

Professor Manfred Mohr, an international legal expert and co-chair of the International Coalition to Ban Uranium Weapons (ICBUW), assesses that the citizens of Kosovo should be concerned because this territory was bombed with at least ten tons of depleted uranium ammunition in 1999.

Mohr tells Kosovo Online that this is a lower estimate of the amount of ammunition used at that time, with the upper estimate ranging up to 15 tons.

"It is a highly toxic chemical substance found in Kosovo’s soil and agricultural areas. Citizens should be aware of the danger and not enter these areas without protective equipment. Moreover, the poison can be introduced through water", Dr. Mohr emphasizes.

He emphasizes that estimates indicate there are at least 100 locations in Kosovo where depleted uranium ammunition was used, and his organization has closely collaborated with Zafa Busoli, an Albanian from Kosovo who has been researching this topic for years.

"He was an activist who identified many places and started decontaminating them. He put clean land onto the contaminated land. It is a simple and affordable method. Other methods are very expensive because contaminated soil can be completely removed, but that comes with a high cost. Busoli got sick after being contaminated. The diagnosis showed that many toxins entered his body", Dr. Mohr says, adding that everything indicates an increase in the number of severe diseases in Kosovo, and exposure to this ammunition is undoubtedly one of the reasons.

His organization premiered a film at the end of last year, which they made with German journalist Moritz Enders, titled "Toxic NATO".

The film discusses the consequences of using this ammunition in Kosovo and municipalities in southern Serbia.

Mohr states that Srdjan Aleksic, a lawyer from Nis, contributed the most to this cause. In Serbia, Aleksic organized several scientific conferences and discussions with experts, lawyers, and doctors.

He assessed that it was very important that last year, in Belgrade, lawyer Aleksic had filed lawsuits against NATO for using this ammunition during the bombing of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1999.

"It is essential to note that this is not just about Serbian victims but also victims in other parts of the former Yugoslavia. In areas affected by armed conflicts, victims include the Serbs, the Albanians, and others, even beyond Europe, related to other battlefields", Mohr specifies.

He explains that the key danger lies in the fact that during the conflicts in the former Yugoslavia, many areas were contaminated, not only with depleted uranium but also with other toxins.

All those affected afterward, Mohr says, are victims of the "Balkan Syndrome".

Mohr says that the first to notice this were soldiers from European countries who fell ill after missions in the Balkans. Among them, there were mostly soldiers from Italy and Germany, but what is characteristic of all of them is that they suffered from some form of poisoning or cancer.

"Our organization analyzed the affected areas in the Balkans, and we have a report from 2011. Its goal is to take responsibility, including NATO. Data on where such ammunition was dropped should be disclosed. The citizens of Kosovo should be warned about such areas, and I hope they are marked. It's challenging for someone to determine where depleted uranium ammunition is located. That's why such weaponry must be banned because it is against international law", Professor Mohr emphasizes.

He says that the issue of depleted uranium use has become more prominent with the war in Ukraine and after the announcements by the United States that it might provide Ukraine with Abrams tanks that use such ammunition.

"American media covered this. There is a process of addressing this issue. Twenty years ago, when our coalition was founded, it wasn't like that. In the meantime, there is a global discussion on this topic, and there is an understanding that war and the environment are connected. The war in Ukraine and the Gaza Strip shows that all citizens are affected, people are dying, but also nature and animals", Mohr says.

He notes that the main problem is that leading countries in the world do not want to ban this weapon because it is effective and cheap.

Mohr states that Great Britain has already started delivering its tanks that use depleted uranium ammunition to Ukraine.

"Depleted uranium ammunition has not been acceptable for several years. The military likes it because it is highly efficient and cheap since enriched uranium is a waste product. The military gladly used that ammunition. In recent years, the defense industry has been seeking alternatives. There is already such ammunition. The German Army does not have uranium ammunition; the Leopard tank delivered to Ukraine uses different ammunition, such as cobalt, which is, of course, much more expensive. The process that was initiated, which we can say is a success of civil society, unfortunately, related to the war in Ukraine, has been stopped. Armies are returning to uranium ammunition because they have it, and it is cheap. So the British have started with that, and the tanks they delivered use such ammunition", Mohr says.

He emphasizes that it is a devastating fact that soldiers have not learned lessons from the past, not realizing that depleted uranium ammunition is detrimental not only to those it is fired upon but also to those who use it.

"Soldiers obviously haven't learned anything. Primarily because they don't want to see that such ammunition also harms them“.

“Uranium ammunition not only kills people but also destroys nature for many years. It affects innocent civilians, animals, and plants. It is a weapon that causes harm even to its own armed forces. Many American soldiers returned from the Middle East seriously ill because of it. In more than 30 trials, Italy has admitted that Italian soldiers fell ill due to enriched uranium. Now, this is being forgotten again", Mohr says.

This expert emphasizes that the military literature in both the United States and Germany clearly indicates the danger of uranium weapons and specifies that soldiers should not approach these depots. However, Mohr notes that there is a public perception that this weapon is not harmful.

"If we are now returning to uranium ammunition to help the victim of aggression, obviously nothing has been learned. Ukrainians are contaminating their own territory with it. Uranium ammunition helps in a war confrontation, but afterward, there is significant damage to the environment. Even as victims of aggression, this weapon should not be used if one wants to protect their own population and military. Obviously, soldiers have not learned anything since they are returning to this ammunition in the war in Ukraine, even though they know the danger. They need to be reminded in various ways, through the media, but also through lawsuits", Mohr explicitly states.