Oliver Towfigh Nia
07 January 2025•Update: 08 January 2025
BERLIN
NATO’s Ukraine Defense Contact Group will meet on Thursday at the US air base of Ramstein located in southwestern Germany to discuss boosting support for Kyiv in its war with Russia.
US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, who had issued the formal invitation, will attend his final meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group as he will be replaced by Pete Hegseth once President-elect Donald Trump takes up office on Jan. 20.
According to public broadcaster SWR, it is unclear whether the issue of more arms deliveries will be on the agenda of the meeting which is the 25th of its kind.
Germany has been pushing Ukraine’s allies to step up financial and military aid for Kyiv.
On Dec. 27, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz warned against abandoning Ukraine in its war with Russia.
“Russia is waging a brutal and merciless war of aggression against Ukraine, leaving hundreds of thousands dead and injured. We must do everything we can to ensure that Ukraine is not left alone and remains a sovereign state,” Scholz said in an interview with the T-Online news website.
The meeting of the Contact Group, initially scheduled for October, was postponed when US President Joe Biden — who had been slated to chair a leaders-level meeting for the group — canceled his trip to deal with the aftermath of Hurricane Milton. The last meeting of the group was held in September.
The future of the Ramstein group and especially American support for Ukraine are reportedly in doubt, as Trump has been very critical of the amount of US aid sent to the Eastern European country. He also has expressed an interest in bringing an end to the war but has not said how he would accomplish it.
The group of more than 50 nations, also known as the Ramstein group, includes members of NATO as well as most of the European Union. It was formed by Austin in April 2022, after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and is aimed at coordinating military support for Ukraine’s war against neighboring Russia.
