The evidence can be found on the Russian MoD website. The press center published an infographic featuring Sergeant Sergey Gubarev. According to the statement, on March 4 Gubarev, being a TOS-1A gunner-operator, "destroyed 14 units of the enemy [Ukrainian] weaponry and military machinery and over 40" Ukrainian troops.
Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security Defense Council of Ukraine reacted to this information. The Ukrainian Center noted, that such a publication on the official government resource means that Russia de-facto admitted their usage of thermobaric weapons in Ukraine. Thermobaric munitions, also known as vacuum bombs, are prohibited by the International humanitarian law for use both against military and civilians.
Read more: Russia has Used Vacuum Bombs in Ukraine
"With this 'heroic' fable Russia accidentally or due to its intellectual inability, for the first time admitted the usage against Ukrainians of TOS-1A 'Solntsepyok', which strikes with thermobaric munitions," the Center for Countering Disinformation said on Facebook.
The Ukrianian government organization also explained why that fable about 14 destroyed vehicles and 40 personnel is fake. According to the Center for Countering Disinformation, the TOS-1A "Solntsepyok", first of all, could not possibly demonstrate such effectiveness on the battlefield. The Center pointed out, that the TOS-1A multiple rocket launcher is equipped with a package of 24 uncontrollable reactive munitions. Therefore, for an attack with such casualties sergeant Gubarev would need to perform a strike with a 100% hit rate which is not practically possible in actual combat.
As Defense Express previously reported, a thermobaric weapon, aerosol bomb, or vacuum bomb is a type of explosive that uses oxygen from the surrounding air to generate a high-temperature explosion. In practice, the blast wave typically produced by such a weapon is of a significantly longer duration than that of a conventional condensed explosive.
This type of ammunition is prohibited by UN Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW) because it attacks indiscriminately – it cannot distinguish between combatants and civilians, The Conversation reports. A thermobaric weapon might be targeted specifically at military installations and personnel, but its effects cannot be contained to one area. In all likelihood, many civilians would be killed if such bombs were used in any city.
Ukraine earlier accused Russia of using vacuum bombs in Ukraine. Mayor of Okhtyrka city Pavlo Kuzmenko announced that some bombs – probably vacuum – were dropped on an oil depot on February 28. Later, on March 3, the British Ministry of Defense tweeted that Russia confirmed the use of the TOS-1A weapon system in Ukraine.
Read more: Enemy's Assault Aircraft Attacked Belarusian Territory on the Border with Ukraine
