Sec. of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III addresses Ukraine Defense Contact Group

Our commitment to Ukraine is a commitment to lasting security in Europe and beyond. Opening Remarks by Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III at the 15th Ukraine Defense Contact Group (As Prepared) SEPT. 19, 2023 Good morning, everyone. Thanks for joining us for the 15th meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group. And it’s great to see both new and familiar faces here today. I want to start with a word of thanks to Oleksii Reznikov for his hard work and dedication—and for everything that he did for a free Ukraine in a secure world. And I’d like to welcome Ukraine’s new Minister of Defense, Rustem Umerov. We had a good call last week, and we had the chance to sit down together earlier this morning as well. Rustem, I look forward to working closely with you and your team. And I know that everyone else here does too. Now, even as we’re meeting here, Ukrainian troops are in a hard fight to reclaim their sovereign territory from dug-in Russian invaders. Ukraine’s counte