Pentagon chief Hagel to attend Ramstein after all – Politico
10 April 19:20
U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hagel will join the meeting of the Contact Group on Ukraine’s Defense (Ramstein format) on April 11 online.
This was reported by Politico, Komersant ukrainskyi reports.
Earlier, Defense News, citing sources, wrote that the United States would miss the Ramstein meeting for the first time, although it had previously led the coalition. At the time, it was reported that Hughes would not join either in person or online, and the Pentagon was unlikely to send high-level representatives.
What is Ramstein?
“Ramstein, or the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, is an initiative that was created to assess Ukraine’s defense needs and provide assistance.
When was the first meeting of the Contact Group held?
The first meeting of the Contact Group took place on April 26, 2022, at Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany. The Ramstein Contact Group includes approximately 50 countries that provide military assistance to Ukraine.
Prior to the change of administration in the United States, the Ramstein meetings were chaired by senior U.S. military officials, including the head of the Pentagon and the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. After the change of government, then-Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said that the future of Ramstein would be determined by the new administration.
Thus, the United Kingdom and France took over the leadership. The new US Secretary of Defense Pete Hagel joined the Ramstein meeting on February 12. There, he called Ukraine’s desire to return to the 2014 borders “the pursuit of an illusory goal.”
