22 May 2008 - Members of the European Parliament have voted overwhelmingly in favour a groundbreaking resolution that calls for negotiations with a view to enacting a global ban on depleted uranium weapons.

Dr Caroline Lucas MEP, a UK member of the Parliament’s Greens/EFA Group which led the initiative and a member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament’s national council, said:

"Euro-MPs have sent out a strong message to the European community today that negotiations to establish an international treaty to globally ban all production, transfer and use of so-called depleted uranium (DU) conventional weaponry must start now.

“EU and NATO forces should halt the deployment and use of these weapons immediately. EU armed forces widely used DU weaponry in the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan, leading to high levels of civilian casualties, fatal diseases and birth malformations.

“Troops and civilian personnel must not be deployed where armed forces have used this highly carcinogenic material. The Greens urge the EU member states to submit their health reports in line with the UN resolution on DU as adopted on 5 December 2007. They should also inform troops and civilians about the areas where DU has been used and initiate further investigations.

Dr Lucas concluded: “I call on the European Commission to open possibilities for projects aimed to assist victims and clean-up operations in areas affected by DU bombs. Pending the outcome of investigations and the treaty negotiations, both EU and NATO should maintain a full DU moratorium."