, event4= 24th/25th UDCG meetings
, event5 =

Second Trump presidency Donald Trump's second and current tenure as the president of the United States began upon his inauguration as the 47th president on January 20, 2025. On his first day, Trump pardoned about 1,500 people convicted of offenses in the Janua ...

, date_event5 =→ ' time , date_event7 =JAN–FEB 2025
(') , date_event8 =
, year_end = , life_span = –present , event7 = Ukraine mission, Wiesbaden - Erbenheim , event8 = EU

Readiness 2030 Readiness 2030 (formerly ReArm Europe) is a strategic defense initiative proposed by European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen on 4 March 2025, aimed at enhancing the European Union's military capabilities. It was unveiled in a letter to ...

defence initiative
• NATO The Hague Investment Plan , date_event3 =
, event3 =9th UDCG meeting,
• NATO–Ukraine Council meeting , date_event6=
, event6 = Putin-Trump call
• Trump–Zelensky meeting, , date_event9 =
, event9 = 6th CoW meeting (leaders),
• 29th UDCG virtual meeting , event_start = SecDef Ukraine Defence Contact Group announcement , year_start = , image_map=Ukraine Defense Contact Group.svg , map_caption= , footnotes = The Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG, also known as the Ramstein group) is an alliance of 57 countries (all 32

member states of NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is an international military alliance consisting of 32 member states from Europe and North America. It was established at the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty on 4 April 1949. Of the 32 member c ...

and 25 other countries) and the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

supporting the defence of Ukraine by sending military equipment in response to the 2022 Russian invasion. The group coordinates the ongoing donation of military aid at monthly meetings. A first meeting took place between 41 countries on 26 April 2022, and the coalition comprised 54 countries at the time of the 14 February 2023 meeting. , reports of meetings usually stated "more than 50" or "about 50" members.

Meetings

At the 20 January 2023 meeting at

Ramstein Air Base Ramstein Air Base is a United States Air Force installation located in Rhineland-Palatinate, southwestern Germany. It serves as the headquarters for the United States Air Forces in Europe – Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA) and NATO Alli ...

, leading to the group thereafter being referred to as the "Ramstein Group", the alliance supported sending heavy offensive weaponry to Ukraine, in support of a planned spring offensive. The possible transfer of German-made

Leopard 2 The Leopard 2 is a third generation German main battle tank (MBT). Developed by Krauss-Maffei in the 1970s, the tank entered service in 1979 and replaced the earlier Leopard 1 as the main battle tank of the West German army. Various iterat ...

main battle tanks from Poland was a sticking point at the January 2023 meeting and in bilateral discussions following this. Germany continued to delay Leopard tank exports until 25 January 2023 when it announced it would provide 14 of its own Leopard 2A6 tanks in tandem with the United States providing 31

M1 Abrams The M1 Abrams () is a third-generation American main battle tank designed by Chrysler Defense (now General Dynamics Land Systems) and named for General Creighton Abrams. Conceived for modern armored ground warfare, it is one of the heavies ...

tanks. By 25 February, 71 Leopard 2 tanks had been formally committed for delivery to Ukraine from Germany (18), Portugal (3), Sweden (10), Poland (14), Spain (10), Norway (8), and Canada (8); the first four arrived in Ukraine on 24 February. Additionally, a joint German-Danish-Dutch initiative was announced on 7 February to supply 100–178 Leopard 1A5 tanks from FFG and

Rheinmetall Rheinmetall AG () is a German automotive and arms manufacturer, headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany. The group was promoted to the DAX, Germany's leading stock market index, in March 2023. It is the largest German and fifth largest Europe ...

stocks. At the 14 February conference, the main topic of discussion was the transfer of modern fighter jets to Ukraine. The two subsequent meetings included considering how to finance an increase in industrial capacity to sustainably replace ammunition and equipment sent to Ukraine into the future. The 11 October 2023 meeting took place after the

Gaza war The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...

had started. Ukrainian president

Volodymyr Zelenskyy Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy (born 25 January 1978) is a Ukrainian politician and former entertainer who has served as the sixth and current president of Ukraine since 2019. He took office five years after the start of the Russo-Ukraini ...

attended, and was given assurances military aid would be sustained, although Zelenskyy acknowledged there was uncertainty. Zelenskyy emphasised the need for winter air defence. ''

NBC News NBC News is the news division of the American broadcast television network NBC. The division operates under NBCUniversal Media Group, a division of NBCUniversal, which is itself a subsidiary of Comcast. The news division's various operations r ...

'' later reported that officials at the meeting had begun confidential and delicate talks with the Ukrainian officials about what the broad outlines of possible peace negotiations might entail, according to two U.S. participants. The 23 January 2024 meeting concluded without any US funding, only from France, and Germany in the face of obstacles to funding in the

US Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

. There were plans for a leaders level meeting of the "Ramstein Group" on 12 October 2024, this meeting was postponed after

US president The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed For ...

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

cancelled his participation in order to oversee the response to

Hurricane Milton Hurricane Milton was an extremely powerful and destructive tropical cyclone which in 2024 became the most intense Atlantic hurricane ever recorded over the Gulf of Mexico, tying with Hurricane Rita in 2005. Milton made landfall on the west coa ...

. At the first meeting after US president

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...

was

inaugurated In government and politics, inauguration is the process of swearing a person into office and thus making that person the incumbent. Such an inauguration commonly occurs through a formal ceremony or special event, which may also include an inau ...

, on 12 February 2025, US Secretary of Defence

Pete Hegseth Peter Brian Hegseth (born June 6, 1980) is an American author, former television presenter, and former Army National Guard officer who has served as the 29th United States secretary of defense since 2025. Hegseth studied politics at Princeton ...

said a return to Ukraine's pre-2014 borders was "an unrealistic objective" in any peace agreement, adding that any attempt to regain all of the territory "will only prolong the war and cause more suffering". He said that president Trump does not support membership of NATO for Ukraine in a peace agreement, and expects Europe to provide more financial and military assistance for Ukraine, while the US concentrates on its own security and the challenge of China; no US troops will be deployed to Ukraine.

Meetings list

Subgroups

Eight capability coalitions have been formed within UDCG: *

Air Force An air force in the broadest sense is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army aviati ...

: Denmark, Netherlands, United States. A total of 16 countries are involved in the fighter program. Belgium, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands have committed to supply aircraft to Ukraine. So far, the United States has declined to supply its own

F-16 The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is an American single-engine supersonic multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it e ...

s, which are produced in America. Morris Air National Guard Base in

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

, The 86th “Lieutenant Aviator Gheorghe Mociorniță” Air Base in

Borcea Borcea is a commune situated in the eastern part of Călărași County, Muntenia, Romania. It is one of the most populous communes in the county and it is situated on the west bank of the Borcea branch (a section of the Danube). The commune was ...

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

;

Skrydstrup Air Base Vojens Airport, also known as Skrydstrup Airport is an airport in Vojens, Denmark. It shares runways with Fighter Wing Skrydstrup Fighter Wing Skrydstrup is an air base of the Royal Danish Air Force (RDAF) situated in southern Jutland. It is ho ...

in southern Denmark and undisclosed UK location are used for pilot training. * Armor: Germany, Poland. * Artillery: France, United States. * Demining: Iceland, Lithuania. * Drones: Latvia, United Kingdom. * Integrated Air and Missile Defense: France, Germany. * Information Technology: Estonia, Luxembourg. * Maritime Security: Norway, United Kingdom.

Partners

The following countries have provided military aid (lethal and non-lethal) to Ukraine, although there is no public confirmation of their participation in the Ukraine Defense Contact Group: * (provided mortars and aerial bombs) * (provides de-mining training) * (provides de-mining training) * (provided anti-drone systems, counter-drone intelligence, and non-lethal aid such as helmets, flak jackets, etc.) Israel has been unwilling to provide Ukraine with weapons. * (provided rocket launchers and air defense missiles) * (provided 20 T-72 tanks) * (provided artillery shells, rockets, and other ammunition) * (provided 120 mm mortar bombs and additional undeclared aid) * (provided

unmanned aerial vehicle An unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) or unmanned aircraft system (UAS), commonly known as a drone, is an aircraft with no human pilot, crew, or passengers onboard, but rather is controlled remotely or is autonomous.De Gruyter Handbook of Dron ...

NATO–Ukraine Council

NATO plans to invite Ukraine as a member into a new organization, the NATO–Ukraine Council.This organization was announced at NATO's July 2023 summit in Vilnius, Lithuania. The inaugural meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council happened on 12 July 2023 at the NATO's

2023 Vilnius Summit The 2023 Vilnius summit was the formal meeting of the heads of state and heads of government of the thirty-one members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), their partner countries, and the European Union, held in Vilnius, Lithuania ...

. The Council met at the level of Heads of State and Government, including the participation of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

References

External links

Ukraine–NATO relations
{{2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine Political conferences Reactions to the Russian invasion of Ukraine 21st century in Rhineland-Palatinate Diplomatic conferences in Germany Germany–Ukraine relations Ukraine–NATO relations