For the first time since the US created the Contact Group on Defense of Ukraine (in the "Ramstein" format) three years ago to coordinate military assistance to Ukraine, the head of the Pentagon will not attend the meeting of more than 50 other defense leaders on Wednesday, AP reports, writes UNN.
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US Defense Secretary Pete Hegset, who returned on Sunday from a national security conference in Singapore, will arrive in Brussels only on Wednesday evening, after the Ramstein meeting, the publication writes.
A US representative, speaking on condition of anonymity, confirmed that Hehset will also not participate in the video conference.
This is the latest in a series of steps the United States has taken to distance itself from the war in Ukraine, the publication notes. And it came after French President Emmanuel Macron warned at a security conference last weekend that the US and others risk dangerous double standards if they focus on a potential conflict with China at the cost of abandoning Ukraine.
New meeting in the "Ramstein" format will be held on June 4 - NATO29.05.25, 11:40
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Meanwhile, a high-ranking Ukrainian delegation headed by First Deputy Prime Minister - Minister of Economy Yulia Svyrydenko is in Washington for talks on defense, sanctions and post-war reconstruction, said Andriy Yermak, Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine.
The Ukrainians met with US Special Representatives Steve Vitkoff and Keith Kellogg, discussed the latest negotiations with the Russians and the conditions on the battlefield, Yermak wrote on social media. Svyrydenko and Yermak are also expected to meet with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and other officials on Wednesday.