For the first time in the history of the Rammstein format, the United States will not attend a meeting dedicated to coordinating military assistance to Ukraine, Defense News reported, citing informed sources in Washington. The meeting, scheduled for April 11, 2025, in Brussels, will be held without the presence of Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth, which will be an unprecedented step for the coalition created in 2022 to support Kyiv in the context of the war with Russia. The absence of the US Secretary of Defense at such a significant event has caused a wide resonance among allies and observers, signaling possible changes in the US approach to the Ukrainian conflict.

The Ramstein format, named after the air base in Germany where the first meeting took place, brings together more than 50 countries coordinating arms deliveries and financial aid to Ukraine. Since the start of the full-scale conflict, the United States has played a key role in the process, providing Kyiv with more than $120 billion in military support. Hegseth’s decision to skip the April meeting is seen as a departure from Washington’s previous proactive stance. Defense News sources say there will be no U.S. delegation at all, making this a unique case in the coalition’s history.

The reasons for this move have not yet been officially disclosed, but analysts associate it with a rethinking of the policy of the Donald Trump administration, which returned to power in January 2025. Trump has repeatedly stated his intention to end the conflict in Ukraine, criticizing the amount of aid allocated to Kyiv. In March 2025, he already suspended arms supplies, demanding that the Ukrainian leadership make "good faith efforts" in negotiations with Moscow. Although the US later resumed support after consultations in Saudi Arabia, the current demarche may indicate a further reduction in Washington's involvement in the military aspects of the conflict.

The US absence at Ramstein calls into question the future of a coalition in which American leadership has long set the tone. European allies, already worried about the instability of American policy, are now forced to find ways to compensate for a possible shortfall in aid. In recent months, Europe has been stepping up its own efforts: in March 2025, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas proposed allocating up to 40 billion euros for Ukraine’s military needs, although the plan met with resistance from several southern European countries. France and the UK have also announced increased arms supplies, and Germany’s Rheinmetall predicts sales will increase in 2025 due to demand for ammunition for Kyiv.