**Ukraine’s Defense Minister Meets with US Counterpart for First Time**
Ukraine’s Defense Minister Rustem Umerov met with the US Defense Secretary, Pete Hegseth, on February 12. This meeting took place during a summit in Brussels.
This is the first time the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG) has been chaired by the UK instead of the US. The change comes after President Donald Trump took office and revised the country’s foreign and security policy.
**Summit Focuses on Supporting Ukraine**
The 26th UDCG meeting will focus on supporting Ukraine. This includes expanding defense production, financing new enterprises, and increasing arms supplies through European defense industry capacities. The summit is chaired by UK Defense Secretary John Healey.
**Concerns about US Support for Ukraine**
There are concerns that the US might not provide any new support to Ukraine during this meeting. This comes after President Trump pledged to broker a peace deal but was evasive regarding continued military backing for Kyiv.
**First Ramstein Summit During Trump’s Administration**
This is the first time a Ramstein summit has taken place during President Trump’s administration. The summit usually sees allies announcing fresh aid packages for Ukraine, but this might not happen with Hegseth participating in “listening mode.”
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