The Pentagon has invited 40 allied nations to meet in Germany next Tuesday to discuss Ukraine's long-term security needs as kyiv continues to fight Russian troops in the south and east of the country.
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Defense ministers and senior generals from 20 countries, whether NATO members or not, have already accepted an invitation from US Defense Minister Lyoyd Austin to meet at the US Ramstein base west of the Germany, Pentagon spokesman John Kirby announced on Friday.
According to him, the meeting will make it possible to look into the question of the assistance that could be provided by Ukraine's partners to strengthen its military power, once the war is over.
One of the things Lyoyd Austin hopes for on this occasion “
is the start of discussions between like-minded countries on the long-term defense relations that Ukraine will need
” thereafter, John Kirby told the press.
“
It's mostly about modernization and making sure their military is still strong and able to function in the future.
These are not security guarantees, but their real military device
, ”added the spokesman for the American defense.
This meeting comes after nearly two months of war during which the army of kyiv managed to repel the Russian assaults in the north, around the capital, while the east of the country, partially under Russian control, must facing a new offensive by Vladimir Putin's army.
The United States has coordinated the supply of military equipment, including ammunition, from some 30 countries to support Ukrainian forces.
The extension of this assistance will be on the table of discussions as well as an inventory of the industrial capacities of the partner countries in order to determine how the manufacturers of weapons can continue to help Ukraine, according to John Kirby.
This meeting does not take place within the framework of NATO and could not lead to any concrete progress in the immediate future, he warned.
