New US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is expected to assume the role of backseat driver in his first in person meeting with European counterparts on Wednesday as the new Trump administration works to shift responsibility for Ukrainian and European security squarely to NATO and the EU.
Notably, the meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Brussels will be chaired by the United Kingdom. Under the Biden administration, the gatherings were convened by the US, which founded the group just after Russia’s invasion in 2022. In a series of meetings in Europe this week Hegseth, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and President Donald Trump’s envoy to Ukraine and Russia, Gen.
defense ministers meeting, Hegseth is expected to urge members to increase their defense spending to 5% of their respective GDPs and ramp up their defense industrial base to start manufacturing weapons and equipment more quickly, defense officials said. But the US’ allies are still waiting to see what Hegseth requests of them behind closed doors, one
and European officials, meanwhile, say they have been able to glean little from Hegseth’s first few weeks as secretary, during which he has focused on domestic culture war issues like eliminating diversity, equity and inclusion programs in the US military and surging military assets to the US southern border, where Marines and soldiers have helped with logistical tasks like building barriers and shuttling migrants to and from detention facilities.
and EU allies the need for “increased European leadership,” including when it comes to security assistance to Ukraine and an increase in defense spending overall.
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