U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov during the 20th Ramstein-format meeting in Germany on March 19, 2024. (Rustem Umerov/Facebook)
The next Ramstein-format summit of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG) will be held on Sept. 6, as reported by Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) on Aug. 20.
The U.S.-led group, consisting of over 50 countries, including all 31 NATO members, convenes at Ramstein Air Base in Germany.
This will mark the group's 24th meeting since its establishment in April 2022.
At the last meeting on June 13, participants focused on strengthening Ukraine's air defense, including the provision of Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems, amid increasing Russian aerial attacks on cities and the energy grid.
Argentina also announced its membership in the UDCG, joining efforts to coordinate military aid for Ukraine.
Kateryna Hodunova is a News Editor at the Kyiv Independent. She previously worked as a sports journalist in several Ukrainian outlets and was the deputy chief editor at Suspilne Sport. Kateryna covered the 2022 Olympics in Beijing and was included in the Special Mentions list at the AIPS Sport Media Awards. She holds a bachelor's degree in political journalism from Taras Shevchenko University and a master's degree in political science from the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
"If the Europeans drew a line and said: 'We're not going to buy more Russian gas, we're not going to buy Russian oil.' Would that have a positive influence on the U.S. leaning in more aggressively (on sanctions) as well? Absolutely," U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said.
U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed on Sept. 7 that he is prepared to advance to a new phase of sanctions against Russia, prompting experts to speculate on what the next step might involve.
"Potatoes, eggs, milk, and butter are becoming more expensive... But some unscrupulous producers, suppliers, or sellers are allowing themselves to profit in this way," Russian Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov said.
Russian authorities are known to extract confessions under duress, and the highly formalized language of the arrested man's testimony suggested it may have been pre-written.
"The drone is unarmed, and there are Cyrillic inscriptions on it," said Agnieszka Kepka, spokesperson for the prosecutor's office in Poland's eastern city of Lublin.
Kateryna Denisova
