Where and how much depleted uranium has been fired?

Information delivered by Henk van der Keur of the Laka Foundation, Amsterdam

at the CADU conference, Manchester, 4 November, 2000

United States : 700,000 metric tonnes Currently stored in the form of UF6, stored incylinders at Paducah, Kentucky, and Portsmouth, Ohio. 160,000 metric tonnes, stored in the form of UO2 and metal

Urenco (UK, FRG, NL) : 38,000 metric tonnes Currently stored in the form of UF6

Cogema (France) : 119,900 metric tonnes (dUF6) Stored at Bessines-sur-Gartempe (Haute Vienne) near Limoges
 
 

DU testing amount of DU

Ethan Allen Firing Range (Vermont) 1969 - 1973 4,500 kg

Lake City Ammunition Plant (Missouri) until 1985 3,500 kg

China Lake Naval Air Warfare Center (California) 10 years 11,300 kg

NM Institute of Mining & Technology (New Mexico) since June '72 ---

Los Alamos National Laboratory (New Mexico) 100,000 kg

Jefferson Proving Ground (Indiana) 1982 - 1988 69,000 kg

Aberdeen Proving Ground (Maryland) 70,000 kg

Eglin Air Force Base (Florida)

- Gunnery Ballistic Facility 1973 - 1978

100,000 kg

- High Explosive Test Area at present

Nellis Air Force Base (Nevada) since 1982 27,800 kg

Total (known) amount of DU fired: 386,100 kg

Panama - There are strong appointments that the US Army has trained with DU rounds along the sides of the Panama Channel. No data available.

1995/1996 Japan From December '95 - January '96 the US Navy AV-8B Harriers (aircraft) test-fired 1,520 25mm PGU/20 API rounds 100 km west of the main island of Okinawa. Total amount of DU: 251 kg.

Puerto Rico (Vieques) On 19 February, 1999, two US Marine Corps AV-8B Harriers expended 263 25mm PGU/20 API rounds at Vieques Island, Puerto Rico, North Convoy Site. Between March 10 and 19, 1999, 57 round were recovered. 263 Rounds is equal to 34 kg of DU.

The British Army fires DU ammunition at their test sites near Eskmeals and Kirkcudbright. There are no data available. Also about the French tests there are no data available. US and British tank divisions have trained in Central Europe. There are no data available about firing of DU ammunition.

973 Yom Kippur War. Probably the first war with DU ammunition (prototypes) Probably fired by the M60A1 MBT. No data available

Falklands War. Possible use of Phalanx CIWS missile defense gun. No data available

Israeli Invasion of South Lebanon. Use of modified / upgraded M60 (series) M60 MBT. No data available

US Invasion of Panama. Possible use of DU ammunition. No data available

1994 Bosnia - In August US A-10s destroyed a Bosnian Serb mobile `tank buster'. No data available.

Kosovo - On 7 February 2000 NATO confirmed the use of 31,000 30mm PGU/14A API rounds. Total amount: 8401 kg of DU.

!! When there is solid evidence about the use of DU in (Tomahawk) cruise missiles, the amounts of DU left behind in Iraq and Yugoslavia will be considerably higher. !!
 

Accidents with DU weaponry 1991, Great Britain

On 8th February there was a fire at the Royal Ordnance special Metal Factory at Featherstone in Staffordshire. No data available about the amount of DU which has been released.

1991 Kuwait - Munitions fire US Army base Doha, Kuwait (July 1991) Around 3,500 kg of DU was released.

M60 series MBTs (all supplied by USA, except mentioned otherwise) Figures from the SIPRI yearbooks 1988 - 1999

Egypt 340 M-60A3 '93 312 M-60A3 ('90) '90-'93 (312)

Greece S: FRG 312 M-60A3 ('90) '90-'92 (253) 359 M-60A1 ('90) '91-'92 (359)

Bahrain 25 M-60A3 '91 '93 (25) 27 M-60A3 '90 '90 27 43 M-60A3 '90 '91 43 50 M-60A3 '86 '87-'88 (50)

Bosnia-H. 45 M-60A3 '96 '96 45

Brazil 91 M-60A3 '96

Italy 10 M-60A1 '93 '93 10

Jordan 50 M-60A3 '95 '96 50

Morocco 120 M-60A3 '94 '94 120 200 M-60A1 '90

Oman .. M-60A3 '91 '91 27

Portugal 80 M-60A3 '91 '91 80

Saudi Arabia 150 M-60A3 '90 '94-'95 150 100 M-60A3 '83 '88 100

Spain 260 M-60A3 '91 '92-'93 (260) 160 M-60A1 '91 '92 (133)

Taiwan 160 M-60A3 '91 '95-'98 (160) 200 M-60A3 '91 160 M-60A3 '91 '95-'96 (160)

L: USA 470 M-60H ('84) '85-'89 (470) (75)M-60A3 '84 (140)M-60A3 ('85)

Thailand (101)M-60A3 '95 '95-'97 (101) 300 M-60A1 '90 '91-'92 (300) (300)M-60A1 '90 '93 (53)

Turkey 600 M-60A3 ('90) '92-'93 (600) (658)M-60A3 ('91) '93-'94 (658) 164 M-60A1 MBT ('91) '92-'93 (109)

M1/M1A1/M1A2 Abrams & Bradleys (all supplied by USA)

Egypt 15 M-1 '88 '90-'91 15

L: USA 31 M-1A1 '98 '97-'98 L: USA 499 M-1A1 '88 '92-'97 (499) 31 M-1A1 '96 '97 31

Saudi Arabia 150 M-1 '90 315 M-1A2 '90 '93-'94 315 150 M-1 '90 (second order) 400 M-2 Bradley AIFV '90 '92-'94 (400)

Kuwait 218 M-1A2 '92 '95-'97 (218)

- L: production under license (Taiwan and Egypt produces under US license)

• (..): probable year of figure(s) 

Excess Defense Articles (EDA)

EDA Grants, EDA Sales, Drawdowns, Leases and Loans, FMS

country item year of transfer quantity source

Bahrain M60A3 TTS '94 1 EDA (internet)

M60A3 TTS '95 50 (lease)

M60A3 TTS '98 60 EDA (internet)

M60 tank W/blade '99 6 EDA (internet)

Brazil M60A3 TTS '95 91 (lease)

Egypt M60A1 '90 700 GAO/NSIAD-93-164FS

M60A3 '93 340 Jane's, 17 Jul 93

Morocco M60A1 '90 300 NSIAD-93-164FS/EDA BBS

M60A1 '93 60 EDA (internet)

M60A1 '94 120 EDA (internet)

M60A1 '97 7 EDA (internet)

Oman M60A3 '90 40 EDA BBS M60A3 TTS '98 ? EDA (internet)

Taiwan M60A3 '91 110 CR, 16 Sep 91, pH6600

Thailand M60A3 '92? 50+ MilBal, 92-93

M60A3 TTS '94 180 FMS

M60A3 TTS '97 107 FMS

TTS = with Tank Thermal Sight

FMS = Foreign Military Sales

Inventory of M60 series MBTs in 18 countries

Source: Jane's Armour and Artillery 1999-2000

Country Model Quantity Comments

Austria M60A3 168

Bahrain M60A3 180 includes 20 delivered in 1995

Bosnia M60A3 45 delivered

Brazil M60A3 91 deliveries underway

Egypt M60A3 759 final deliveries 1987 (new) M60A1 700 ex-US Army delivery 1990- 1991

Greece M60A1/M60A3 669 from the US Army 357 M60A1 and 312 M60A3

Iran M60A1 355 appox. 160 left

Israel M60/M60A1/ 1,350 many local modifications M60A3

Jordan M60A1/M60A3 354

Morocco M60A1/M60A3 300 60 M60A1 and 240 M60A3

Oman M60A1/M60A3 79 6 M60A1 and 73 M60A3

Portugal M60A3 90

Saudi Arabia M60A3 460

Spain M60A3 260 154 + 106 TTS M60A1 50

Sudan M60A3 20 delivered in 1982, current status uncertain

Taiwan M60A3 360 delivered between 1994 and 1996

Thailand M60A3 125 M60A1 53

DU ammunition exports

Most important is to get insight in the proliferation of DU ammunition. Many tanks with 105 mm tank guns (M60 series MBT and their local variants) and 120 mm tank guns (M1A1, M1A2, Challenger, Leclerc, Leopard 2, etc.) can fire DU rounds, however, it is difficult to prove the presence of DU ammunition in the national inventories. Much more research has to be done in this field.

US exports of DU ammunition

Foreign Military Sales

Type amount destination source

105 mm M774 1,000 Taiwan Jane's

85,451 Turkey Jane's

120 mm M833 300 Israel Jane's

2,130 Jordan Jane's

10,025 Pakistan Jane's

320 Saudi Arabia Jane's

22,920 Turkey Jane's

120mm M829A2 23,278 US Army Contract was placed with Primex Technologies in June 1995
 

Developments in Israel and Turkey

Outside the US, the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) is the largest user of the M60 series. As of 1993, they probably had about 1000 M60/M60A1 tanks and about 600 M60A3s. The Israeli designation of the M60 is the Megach-7. Israel has undertaken several upgrades of its Magach-7 fleet, which includes M60/M60A1s and the M60A3s. The 105 mm M68 rifled tank gun, made by Israel Military Industries (IMI), also fitted to most other Israeli tanks, like the Merkava Mk1. The Israeli made 105 mm tungsten APFSDS-T M111 round is claimed to be superior to the US M735.

The M68 main 105 mm gun is standard on all M60s, but also on the Centurions, and Merkavas Mk I and II of the Israeli tank fleet. Military analysts remarks that although the 105 mm main gun on the M60s was much smaller than the 155-mm gun on the T-62, and the 125-mm gun on the T-72, it was very effective against these targets at both long and short ranges. The M68 gun is locally produced by Israeli Military Industries (IMI), formerly TAAS Israel Industries Ltd.

The Israelis still retain the 105 mm main gun on the M60 series tank, but the turret is modified to be able to take the 120 mm gun if needed. The Israelis have been constantly improving their 105 mm rounds, so they are now almost as deadly as most 120mm rounds. The M111 "arrow " round is constantly being upgraded, and Israel has shown a third generation M111 round recently. Panzergruppe, the monthly newsletter of the Washington Armour Club stated in their first issue of 1996: "Israelis are reported developing a depleted uranium round which will probably be able to defeat the armour of almost any vehicle in any service in the Middle East. To accompany this new and improved gun, a new fire control system has been installed for greater accuracy at both shorter and longer ranges."

On 3 September, 1999, IMI unveiled the "SABRA" - an upgraded M60A3 tank developed for the Israeli Army. The modernisation programme, includes, among others, the following systems:

• 120 mm gun system interoperable with NATO weapon systems and ammunition. 
• Passive add-on ballistic protection, providing level against shape charges and kinetic energy projectiles. 

"US Deputy Under-secretary of the Army for International Affairs Gayden Thompson has written to Ankara asking that US companies should be able to compete for the project. The Turkish Land Forces Command has also been urged to reconsider the long-standing US government offer to lease 96 General Dynamics Land Systems (GDLS) M1A1 MBTs." A senior GDLS source said "linking the modernisation project with an M1A1 lease would offer training and logistics benefits as its M60-2000 modernisation proposal involves the installation of M1A1 turrets." On 2 June 2000 the Turkish Defence Industries Under-secretariat (SSM) decided that IMI would be the sole source for the M60 modernisation programme. An SSM official stated that although the committee had decided to ask IMI to build a prototype, it did not mean that a decision to award the full contract to the Israeli firm had been made. Besides GDLS, also German firms like Krauss-Maffei Wegmann are competing in the M60 modernisation programme. The requests for proposals call for four prototypes and an initial production batch of 250 vehicles out of a planned total of 1,000. 

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