Ukraine Contact Group Meeting Underway Shortly

The Ukraine Contact Group of more than 50 countries aligned with Ukraine are shortly due to gather on the margins of the NATO Defence Ministerial in Brussels, Belgium to coordinate military aid to Ukraine.

• The meeting will take place at 09:30 ET 14:30 BST with US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin and Joint Chiefs Chair Mark Milley to brief the press when the meeting concludes at 11:30 ET 16:30 BST. Livestream on the Pentagon website: https://www.defense.gov/News/Live-Events/#/?currentVideo=30258
• Austin said ahead of the meeting that the US, allies, and partners are committed to the defence of Ukraine, “all seasons,” and for the long term.
• The group is expected to announce a significant increase in air defence systems to protect critical Ukrainian infrastructure from further missile attacks but likely to encounter procurement problems.
• Just Security: “Whilst officials agree on the need for more air defence systems, sourcing them quickly is challenging […] in the face of production shortages in the west and stretched inventories.”
• According to the Financial Times, “there is a shortage of production capacity,” and some NATO members are facing years of delays for their own air defence systems.