Department of Defense Appropriations Act, 2025

Floor Speech

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Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition the amendment.

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Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Chair, Ukraine is in a fight for its survival, and artillery has been a critical part in its defense. Cluster munitions are needed to fill a gap until production of 155-millimeter rounds can catch up. We have a shortage of those rounds.

The Russians have been using cluster munitions for over 2\1/2\ years, since the beginning of this conflict. We should not limit Ukraine's ability to respond in kind.

Moreover, the amendment goes beyond prohibiting the transfer of cluster munitions to Ukraine. It would tie our hands in future conflicts, prohibiting the option to use these munitions in contingencies where the only other option are larger munitions that cause even more casualties.

Additionally, it is not hard to imagine a situation where we might need to transfer these munitions to other allies and partners, such as Taiwan or South Korea. We should not impede our own defense or that of our allies and partners with a complete prohibition on cluster munitions.

Mr. Chair, I urge a ``no'' vote, and I reserve the balance of my time.

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Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Crawford).

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Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Chair, this is the final point I would make. The dud rate on the Russian cluster munitions exceeds 30 percent where the dud rate of the U.S. munition is extremely low.

It is a terrible weapon. War is a terrible thing. These weapons are necessary for us to have our allies win. I would ask that we defeat this amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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