WHAT THE US SAYS UKRAINE NEEDS: As he opened this morning’s session of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said the gathering of representatives from more than 50 countries would be focusing on three critical needs: “Air defense, ammunition, and enablers.”

In his public remarks, Austin noted that, so far, the group has provided more than $55 billion in security assistance for Ukraine, with $35 billion from the United States. “Just in the past few months, we’ve provided the equipment and training to support an additional nine armored brigades for Ukraine. That has already strengthened Ukraine’s position on the battlefield.”