“The free world will not let Ukraine fail”: in Ramstein, Lloyd Austin promises help and praises the shooting down of Russian ships and fighters

This is the US Secretary of Defense’s first official trip abroad since undergoing prostate cancer surgery in December.

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin emphasized on Tuesday that the US “will not let Ukraine fail” even as Congress continues to delay critical funding to help Kiev.

Speaking at the 20th meeting of the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, Austin said Ukraine’s military continues “to damage the Kremlin’s capabilities.”

“Ukraine will not back down, and neither will the United States,” said Austin, sitting next to Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. “So our message is clear: America will not let Ukraine fail. This coalition will not let Ukraine fail. And the free world will not let Ukraine fail.”

This is Austin’s first official trip abroad since undergoing prostate cancer surgery in December. He participated in the last two contact groups virtually, after being hospitalized on January 1st due to complications arising from the surgical intervention.

Austin’s statements come at a time of multiple warnings from US and allied officials that Ukraine is running out of ammunition. A senior US defense official told reporters on Friday that Ukraine is “heavily disarmed on the battlefield.”

CNN previously reported that Russia is producing nearly three times as many artillery shells as the US and Europe – about 3 million a year, compared to the US and Europe’s roughly 1.2 million, according to with a senior official from the European secret services.

“Russia’s production is 24/7. I mean, huge, huge,” a European lawmaker told CNN. “We must not underestimate your willingness to overcome us with patience and resilience.”

Asked on Friday how long Ukraine might be able to keep up the fight against Russia without more US support, the official said it depended on a number of factors, including how Russia takes advantage of the situation. “But I want to make it very clear that this is not a question of years, but of weeks and months,” said the same source.

Still, Austin pointed to a series of statistics that demonstrate Russia’s losses. At least 315,000 Russian soldiers have been killed or injured since February 2022, Austin said, and Russia “has spent up to $211 billion to equip, deploy, maintain and sustain its imperial aggression against Ukraine.” Austin also said the war would cost Russia $1.3 billion “in previously predicted economic growth through 2026.”

“Ukraine sank, destroyed or damaged approximately 20 medium to large ships of the Russian Navy,” Austin stressed on Tuesday. “And Ukraine continues to shoot down Russian warplanes.”

The future of supplemental aid in Congress remains uncertain. House Speaker Mike Johnson told Republican senators last week during a closed-door meeting that he was committed to finding a path forward for Ukraine aid in the House of Representatives, a sign that Republican senators interpreted to mean that aid to Kiev is not yet dead in Congress.

Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Oklahoma, told CNN that Johnson made it clear “that he understood the importance and urgency of the issue and was looking for a way forward.”

In the absence of aid, the Pentagon announced a $300 million aid package last week due to financial savings from other US Army contracts. Austin called the package an “extraordinary step” and said the US and its allies would work together “to identify gaps, to manage cross-cutting needs and to help Ukraine build a formidable future force.”

But officials were blunt in saying that the $300 million in aid to Ukraine would not last long. President Joe Biden said the package was “not enough,” and national security adviser Jake Sullivan said it would provide Ukraine with munitions to last perhaps “a few weeks.”

“Ukraine’s survival is at stake,” Austin warned on Tuesday. “And our entire security is at stake. So we will continue to stand together to resist Putin’s campaign of conquest and we will continue to keep faith in the people of Ukraine.”