(13 Jun 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Brussels, Belgium – 13 June 2024
1. Wide of US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin arriving
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Lloyd Austin, US Secretary of Defense:
"Ukraine’s partners around the world continue to stand up to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s aggression. This coalition remains steadfast and strong. And the contact group remains determined to meet Ukraine’s urgent capability needs and to help Ukraine deter Russian aggression for decades to come. Contact group members continue to step up. And to get Ukraine what it needs and when it needs it. Air defense remains Ukraine’s top priority. I applaud those who have dug deep to find more air defense systems and interceptors."
3. Wide of news conference
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Lloyd Austin, US Secretary of Defense:
"I don’t have any announcements on Patriot batteries today, but what I can tell you is that I continue to work this, and I’m in constant contact with my Ukrainian counterpart, and, we’re going to do everything we can to make sure that they have the capability that they need, and that we will get it there as quickly as we can."
5. Austin leaving
STORYLINE:
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Thursday NATO members were doing their utmost to enhance Ukraine’s capability to defend itself after a meeting of the alliance’s defense ministers in Brussels.
“I continue to work this,” Austin told reporters after chairing the meeting. “We’re going to do everything we can to make sure they have the capability they need.”
The ministers met hoping to agree on a new plan to provide long-term security assistance and military training to Ukraine amid Russia’s full-scale invasion, after Hungary promised not to veto the proposal as long as it’s not forced to take part.
The ministers are meeting over two days at NATO headquarters in Brussels in the last high-level talks before a summit hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden in Washington on July 9-11, where the military organization’s leaders are expected to announce financial support for Ukraine.
Ukraine’s Western allies are trying to bolster their military support as Russian troops launch attacks along the more than 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, taking advantage of a lengthy delay in U.S. military aid.
European Union money was also held up by political infighting.
Since Russia’s full-fledged invasion in February 2022, Ukraine’s Western backers have routinely met as part of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, run by the Pentagon, to drum up weapons and ammunition for Kyiv.
A fresh meeting was held at NATO headquarters on Thursday.
Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair said that his country would send Ukraine 2,300 rocket motors, and that 80,000 more of the devices are being tested.
But no progress was made on tracking down the Patriot guided missile systems that Ukraine has been requesting for months.
A key advantage of the U.S.-made systems, apart from their effectiveness, is that Ukrainian troops are already trained to use them.
While the contact group meetings have resulted in significant battlefield support, they have been of an ad-hoc and unpredictable nature.
Stoltenberg has spearheaded an effort to have NATO take up some of the slack.
The idea is for the 32-nation military alliance to coordinate the security assistance and training process, partly by using NATO’s command structure and drawing on funds from its common budget.
He estimates this at around 40 billion euros ($43 billion) worth of equipment each year.
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