US Defense Secretary skips Ukraine meeting for first time since creating it

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will not attend a meeting of 50 defense ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels on 4 June.

This marks the first time in three years a Pentagon chief has skipped the Ukraine Defense Contact Group gathering since 2022, when the group was established on US initiative

The Ukraine Defense Contact Group will convene at NATO headquarters on 4 June, three years after the  first gather.

The Contact Group initially brought together 40 countries. NATO and EU members joined with international partners to support Ukraine against Russian aggression.

The United Kingdom and Germany will convene the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at NATO headquarters this year. The previous Ramstein format meeting took place on 11 April in Brussels. The UK and Germany also convened that meeting.

The Trump administration has distanced itself from the group. The UK and Germany took over leadership of the group in February. This happened after Hegseth said the US would no longer play a role in the monthly meetings. 

Hegseth will be in Brussels for the meeting of NATO defense ministers on 5 June. His place at 4 June Ukraine Defense Contact Group will be taken by US ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker, according to a defense official and two people familiar with their plans.

The Ukraine gathering comes three weeks before NATO’s annual summit in The Netherlands on 24-25 June. Leaders from across the alliance will attend that two-day event. President Donald Trump will likely command an outsize presence as European leaders wait for the administration’s Europe and Russia policies to come into focus.

Ambassador Whitaker said last month that the US will begin talks with allies later this year about potential troop withdrawals from Europe. Nothing has been decided. Hegseth warned during his first visit to NATO in February that the American military presence in Europe was “not forever.” The comment sent ripples of concern throughout the alliance.

Hegseth also admonished European leaders for not spending enough on defense during that meeting. He controversially laid down preconditions for Ukraine to meet before entering peace talks with Russia. These included forgoing an invitation to join NATO and not asking for a return to its pre-invasion borders.