Strengthening the Armed Forces of Ukraine and strategic planning. Umerov and Austin discussed preparations for the upcoming "Ramstein" meeting.

The Minister of Defense of Ukraine Rustem Umerov and the U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin discussed preparations for the upcoming meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (Ramstein format). Additionally, other important issues were addressed.

Umerov himself wrote about this on Facebook. According to him, the preparation for the new "Ramstein" was the main topic of conversation.

"Special attention was paid to the preparations for the next meeting in the 'Ramstein' format. Ukraine and its partners continue to work on solutions that will further enhance our defense capabilities and bring us closer to victory. Our shared vision is security, stability, and a just peace for Ukraine and the entire democratic world," he wrote.

Furthermore, the ministers discussed strategic planning for 2025. This involves the supply of crucial armaments and military equipment to Ukraine, and most importantly, the equipping of the Armed Forces of Ukraine units.

It is worth noting that on Sunday, October 13, it became known that the previously scheduled meeting of the contact group on Ukraine's defense issues (Ramstein format) with the participation of country leaders will not take place. The reason for this is that President Joseph Biden's visit to Europe has been shortened. According to released information, President Biden was planning to arrive in Germany for a visit on Thursday (October 17).

As is known, on October 12, Joe Biden was supposed to chair a meeting at the leader level of the contact group for assistance to Ukraine – the "Ramstein" format. However, due to the approaching hurricane "Milton" towards the Florida coast, he canceled his trip to Europe.

Later, it became known that the "Ramstein" meeting has been postponed to an undetermined date. "Telegraph" learned from political analyst Vladimir Fesenko why the "Ramstein" meeting was actually postponed.