White House on possible transfer of control over Ramstein to NATO: US to continue to chair contact group
The White House says the US will continue to chair the Contact Group on Ukraine’s defence, known as the Ramstein format.
This was announced by White House adviser John Kirby, Censor.NET reports citing Ukrinform.
"I will not speculate on hypothetical conversations that some NATO members may or may not have. The contact group is very, very effective. We will continue to chair and convene it," he said.
Kirby stressed that American leadership in the Contact Group on Ukraine's defence is appreciated by its partners, and the United States "has been getting great feedback from all the countries that are involved".
In this regard, the White House spokesperson emphasised two points. First, he said, this group is larger than NATO and covers fifty countries around the world, including the Indo-Pacific region.
"They were united by American leadership, and they are kept together by American leadership," the adviser said.
Secondly, he stressed, NATO has been part of this process from the very beginning.
"Jens Stoltenberg was present at every meeting, including the first one. So we certainly appreciate the contribution of both the Alliance and individual Allies in the Contact Group. And we certainly expect that to continue," Kirby concluded.
