Austin to Attend UDCG's 25th Meeting, Department Ramping Up to Support Multiple D.C. Events in January

Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III is scheduled to travel to Ramstein Air Base in Germany, Jan. 7, to attend the 25th meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, the Defense Department announced today.

The UDCG, which was founded under Austin in response to Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, is a coalition of some 50 nations that meet regularly to discuss Ukraine's security needs.

Austin's planned attendance at the upcoming meeting is intended to, "reaffirm our enduring commitment to Ukraine, together with defense ministers and military leaders from around the globe," Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told members of the media.

"Secretary Austin will focus on delivering practical and coordinated support that reinforces Ukraine's ability to defend itself today and deter aggression in the future," Singh said, adding that more details about the secretary's official engagements will be made available in the coming days.

The announcement of Austin's attendance at the upcoming UDCG meeting comes on the heels of DOD's announcement on Monday that it will be providing a pair of aid packages to Ukraine with a combined worth of nearly $2.5 billion.

One of the assistance packages comprises a $1.25 billion presidential drawdown authority; the other includes $1.22 billion in funds provided by the Ukrainian Security Assistance Initiative, Singh explained Monday.

She added that the aid packages mark the current administration's 73rd drawdown package and the 23rd package provided by the U.S. Agency for International Development.

When asked whether the new PDA would be delivered in full to Ukraine prior to the current administration's Jan. 20 end date, Singh explained that the "capabilities and equipment" contained within PDAs "[flow] off our shelves as [they're] available."

"[Therefore,] it's very likely that you are going to see more capabilities continue to flow to Ukraine post-this administration; that's very normal," Singh said.

Also, during this afternoon's briefing, Singh announced that DOD will be supporting its interagency partners for three "high-profile national special security events."

Singh said those events include: providing 500 National Guardsmen to play a "key role" in supporting the accounting and certification of the recent election's electoral votes Jan. 6, a request awaiting final approval for 7,800 National Guardsmen and additional forces from U.S. Northern Command to provide security and interagency support during the presidential inauguration Jan. 20 and Joint Task Force - National Capital Region leading ceremonial honors for former President Jimmy Carter's state funeral scheduled to be held Jan. 9.