Contact Group Opens Meeting in Ramstein

The heads of defence ministries of about 50 countries, led by NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, are participating in the meeting. The eighth meeting of the Contact Group on Ukrainian defense issues opened in Germany at the US airbase Ramstein. This was reported by Ukrinform on Friday, January 20. “We, the 50 nations, are determined to stand by Ukraine for as long as it takes. Putin did not expect both Ukraine and us to be resolute. This is a decisive moment for Ukraine and the world,” U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, who chairs the meeting, said during the opening session. The meeting is attended by defense chiefs of about 50 countries, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff of the Army General Mark Milley and Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov. A day earlier, the United States announced a new $2.5 billion military aid package for Ukraine. It included 59 Bradley BMPs, 90 Stryker armored vehicles, Avenge air defense systems and ammunition for NASAMS complexes and many other weapons.