SECRETARY AUSTIN: Well, good morning, Minister Umerov. Welcome back to the Pentagon. First, I want to congratulate you and all Ukrainians on celebrating your Independence Day last weekend. The Ukrainian people continue to fight for your freedom and despite Moscow's cruel waves of attacks on critical civilian infrastructure earlier this week. But let me be clear, it is never acceptable to target civilians and Ukraine's resilience will help it prevail over Putin's aggression and atrocities. Rustem, your forces remain steadfast, and they continue to fend off the Kremlin's assaults and to inflict major losses on Russian invaders. So make no mistake, the United States will not waver in our support for a free, secure and sovereign Ukraine. Alongside some 50 of our allies and partners, the United States will continue to provide the critical capabilities that you need to fight the Kremlin's aggression. As you know, next week I'll travel to Ramstein Air Base to, again, convene the Ukraine Defense Contact Group for the 24th time. The contact group's members stand strong in our support for Ukraine.
And the contact group's eight capability coalitions are working toward Ukraine's long-term security. At next week's meeting, we'll push hard to meet Ukraine's urgent capability needs and these include air defense to counter Russia's planes, drones and missiles along with more artillery and armor, and to help you build additional combat power. So I look forward to discussing how we can best support Ukraine today and into the future. Rustem, thanks for making the trip and I look forward to a great discussion today in making even more progress next week at Ramstein. Over to you, sir.
MINISTER OF DEFENSE UMEROV: Dear Secretary Austin, dear colleagues, thank you for hosting us today. This meeting is of utmost importance to us. The leadership of the United States has set a powerful example to encourage other partners to stand by Ukraine in this critical time. Dear Lloyd, I would like to thank you for your personal role in leading the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group. During today's meeting, we will engage in detailed discussions about the situation on the frontline, including our vision, objectives and plans. We will also address Ukraine's critical needs, including necessary armaments, equipment and training. Another area we can focus on today is Ukrainian domestic production. In the last two years, we have achieved significant progress. Ukraine has launched hundreds of new defense enterprises and can quickly manufacture high-quality weapons, ensuring prompt delivery to the battlefield. So we will touch these topics by discussing and exchanging opinions. Your contribution is always valuable. Thank you.
SECRETARY AUSTIN: Well, thanks again for being here. I look forward to a great discussion. Thanks, everybody.