The United States is handing off leadership of the international group that manages military aid to Ukraine, a sign that President Donald Trump’s Pentagon may play a lesser role in supporting Kyiv.
United Kingdom Secretary of State for Defense John Healey will chair the group as it gathers for its 26th time next week in Brussels, marking the first time an American defense secretary has not convened the meeting in its three-year history.
The Ukraine Defense Contact Group, or UDCG, is a gathering of 50 countries from around the world that first started meeting in 2022 after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Since then, the coalition has sent more than $126 billion in military aid to Kyiv, from F-16 fighter jets to scores of 155mm artillery ammunition.
More than half of that support came from America, which often hosted the group at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, a location that soon became synonymous with the coalition itself.
Former President Joe Biden’s defense secretary, Lloyd Austin, convened every meeting over the first three years and used his last foreign trip this January to argue that the U.S. should continue its aid to Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, joining Austin, said the same — echoing other European leaders who said U.S. support is pivotal in Ukraine’s fight against Russia.
“It would honestly be crazy to drop the ball now,” Zelenskyy said.
Those arguments, however, are falling flat in the Trump administration. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will travel to NATO headquarters in Brussels next week, where the next UDCG will gather. But in a break from past meetings, a U.S. defense secretary will attend rather than host the meeting.
Although Hegseth will give remarks during the meeting, he hasn’t committed to furthering American support.
Other top policy officials entering the Pentagon have argued strenuously against continuing American aid, saying that it saps readiness for a potential war with China around Taiwan.
Meanwhile, Trump has pledged to end the war in Ukraine and appointed an envoy, former Gen. Keith Kellogg, to negotiate a peace deal within 100 days.
Outside experts are skeptical that such a deal can occur without Ukraine’s support, which will be hard to secure as the country slowly loses territory in the east.
Hegseth has already spoken with Healey and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte over the phone. During his trip to Europe, Hegseth will meet with other European officials, according to a U.S. defense official, who was granted anonymity to discuss the plans. Hegseth does not yet have a meeting scheduled with any officials from Ukraine.
The official said the U.S. decision not to convene next week’s meeting isn’t a permanent one, and the Pentagon is still assessing its role in the group.
Noah Robertson is the Pentagon reporter at Defense News. He previously covered national security for the Christian Science Monitor. He holds a bachelor’s degree in English and government from the College of William & Mary in his hometown of Williamsburg, Virginia.
