The Pentagon will indefinitely delay a ban on the use of older types of cluster bombs due to take effect on Jan. 1, 2019, U.S. officials tell Reuters, saying safety improvements in munitions technology failed to advance enough to replace older stockpiles.
Cluster bombs, dropped by air or fired by artillery, scatter bomblets across a wide area which sometimes fail to explode and are difficult to locate and remove. That can lead to civilian deaths and injuries long after conflicts end.
Yes, duds (which can still explode later if handled or stepped on) are a problem with so many scattered sub-munitions lying around. But they are great for soft target destruction.
If North Korea rolls out their massed artillery to hit Seoul, South Korea, these would be invaluable for rapidly taking out lots of guns and ammunition stored nearby.
UPDATE: In unrelated news:
An upgrade that enables the Boeing B-52H Stratofortress bomber to carry smart weapons internally has been declared ready for combat by the US Air Force (USAF).
That's nice, too.
