Ukraine Defense Contact Group to discuss strengthening air defense and drone coalition in Brussels, says Lloyd Austin

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said that during the meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in the "Ramstein" format, new solutions to strengthen Ukraine's air defense and the work of the "Coalition of Drones" will be discussed, as per UkrInform. The Ukraine Defense Contact Group, also known as the "Ramstein" format, brings together nearly 50 countries to coordinate efforts to support Ukraine in its struggle against Russian aggression. The 13 June "Ramstein" meeting is part of the NATO Defence Ministers' meeting. According to the published agenda, a meeting of the Ukraine-NATO Council on the defense ministers' level will also be held today. Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov will participate in both events. It is the last ministerial meeting before the NATO summit in Washington in July. Over these two days, ministers are expected to come to agreements on issues that will be formally approved by the leaders of the Alliance countries in a month. The priority is the sustainable long-term support of Ukraine. This includes strengthening NATO's role in coordinating military assistance to Ukraine and conducting training for its Defense Forces. Earlier, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg visited Hungary and held talks with Prime Minister Viktor Orban. The visit's purpose was to persuade Budapest not to block new initiatives to help Ukraine, as unanimity among NATO members is required for their approval. Hungary said it would not block the decisions but would not send funding or its troops to Ukraine.

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