Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announces $500 million in military aid for Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin used their final meeting in Germany to press the incoming Trump administration to not give up on Kyiv’s fight, warning that to cease military support now “will only invite more aggression,

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has departed for Germany to attend the 25th meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group at the Ramstein Air Base, which is his last one before the end of the Biden administration.

But as the day began, the focus was less on Austin than what it means for him to depart. In the last three years, the secretary has convened this Ukraine Defense Contact Group — a gathering of 50 countries supporting Kyiv — 25 times.

The United States will provide Ukraine with an additional $500 million in weapons and equipment in what’s expected to be the final military aid package under the outgoing Biden administration.

As the Trump administration prepares to take office, Zelenskyy and Austin stress the importance of continued military aid for Ukraine's defense

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has announced a US$500 million military aid package during a meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, also known as the Ramstein-format meetings, at Ramstein Air Base in Germany.