The United States saw an opportunity as it sought to arm Ukraine

Just weeks after Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, Ukrainian forces began to run out of ammunition for their old Soviet-era artillery.

The United States was close Foreign arsenals around the world searched for the right types of missiles As part of its pledge to support Kyiv against its better-equipped opponent. But the Pentagon knew it would never be able to get enough, as fewer countries manufactured Russian heavy artillery ammunition, and many Cold War stockpiles of it became unusable over time.

So, one Saturday that spring, Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III called Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff at the time, to see how many American howitzers could be quickly shipped to Ukraine along with the new ones. Manufacture of high explosive shells.

This call set in motion a chain of events that led to an arms pipeline to Ukraine, and reshaped how the United States envisions alliance building as it pushes back against Russian influence.

Officials in the Biden administration first turned to US allies for help. But they also relied on relationships developed over years with the militaries of non-NATO nations to build a network to assist Ukraine, something the administration sees as a shining example of how its focus on strengthening alliances has paid dividends for U.S. interests around the world.

The group of countries, known as the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, will meet on Thursday at Ramstein Air Base in Germany for the 25th and final time under the Biden administration.

It is uncertain whether it will continue under the leadership of the next administration. President-elect Donald J. Trump is highly skeptical of support for Ukraine, places far fewer alliances and openly seeks to curry favor with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

When set contact It met for the first time on April 26, 2022Just 61 days after the Russian invasion, the United States, Britain, France and a handful of other countries were individually supporting Kiev. But dozens joined them in Germany to hear the latest developments on the battlefield directly from their Ukrainian counterparts.

Massacre of civilians in Bucaa suburb of Kyiv, came to light recently. Mr. Austin and General Milley made clear that similar atrocities were likely to occur without more weapons and ammunition for Ukraine, and asked the assembled dignitaries to dig deep into their arsenals in search of much-needed supplies.

The meeting was convened quickly, on just four days’ notice, in Ramstein, which was chosen for its central location in Europe, its long runway for delegations to arrive by plane, and the ability to maintain tight security while hosting sensitive discussions about Ukraine’s future.

In a casual ballroom at the base’s officers’ club, Mr. Austin and General Milley, flanked by their Ukrainian and German counterparts, sat at the head of folding tables alongside representatives from 40 countries.

It has since expanded to include at least 52 countries, and the Pentagon has hinted that others have kept their participation secret.

They have met almost every month since then.

A global battle for weapons and influence

Shortly after Austin landed at Ramstein Airport on a C-17 cargo plane Wednesday morning, snow began falling on the Air Force’s massive transport planes along the runway. Prepare for the next day’s meeting at a nearby base hotel.

This will be the last meeting of the contact group during his tenure as Minister of Defense.

That evening, the Ukrainian Defense Minister, Rustam UmarovTwo aides walked through the halls of the hotel’s second floor in military uniform to join a private meeting with Mr. Austin.

The Ukrainians traveled lightly, without the kind of large security detail that hovered near their American counterpart.

In some ways, the forces led by Omerov still straddle the two defining military cultures of the Cold War — that of the United States and NATO, and that of the former Soviet Union.

Over the course of decades, both sides created their own weapons systems that were compatible with those of the allies, but not with those of their enemies. Although the differences between the 152mm shells fired by Russian-made artillery pieces and the 155mm version adopted by NATO may seem small, they are symbolic of how militaries around the world have long been divided into one of two camps.

Determining whether a country was allied with the West or with Moscow was often as easy as discovering what weapons it used.

But the number of countries making Russian-designed weapons has dwindled, especially since many of the former Soviet republics that produced these weapons have since joined NATO.

Global supplies of these weapons have declined further as Russia has halted much of its arms exports to maintain sufficient supplies of ammunition for its own needs in Ukraine.

The change has left many of Russia’s traditional customers looking elsewhere for munitions, at a time when more countries around the world have begun producing weapons compatible with NATO standards – even if they are not official members of the alliance.

A new kind of alliance was born

Converting Ukraine – a former member of the Soviet Union – into NATO warplanes Like F-16 planes And arms like HIMARS mobile rocket launchers It has pulled more countries away from Russia’s orbit.

This shift is evident in the formation of the Contact Group itself, which includes 20 countries that were previously in Moscow’s sphere of influence during the Cold War — some of which continued to buy Russian weapons until the invasion of Ukraine.

The formation of the contact group demonstrates a new approach to projecting American power, one that American officials have said future administrations could use in the event of major conflicts, such as a potential Chinese attack on Taiwan.

While NATO has always been an alliance of countries that have pledged to help each other if attacked, its influence has expanded beyond its official 32-nation membership through partnerships with dozens of other countries since the mid-1990s. The United States benefited from that network in establishing the Contact Group.

In addition to NATO member states, many of the countries participating in the Contact Group are what the State Department calls “key non-NATO allies.” They include Argentina, Australia, Colombia, Israel, Japan, Kenya, Morocco, New Zealand, Qatar, South Korea and Tunisia.

After decades of arms sales, these countries collectively have a large stockpile of weapons that meet NATO standards to share with Ukraine.

Other countries are on the fringes of NATO, with Bosnia, Georgia, Ireland, Kosovo and Moldova joining the group, as well as Ecuador and Peru, two former military clients of Russia that have entered into partnerships with the alliance.

Lessons from the battle against ISIS

Mr. Austin designed the Contact Group for the Coalition to Defeat ISIS, which was formed in September 2014 and now includes more than 80 countries.

At the time, Mr. Austin was an Army general in charge of American forces in the Middle East. Eight years later at Ramstein, he shook hands with many of the same leaders who supported him in uniform.

Together, the group’s countries supporting Ukraine have provided Kiev with more than $126 billion in military aid, financing and equipment, according to the Pentagon.

While the Secretary of Defense worked to grow and organize the new alliance, the State Department worked behind the scenes to convince more former Russian military client states to donate their Soviet-era weapons to Kiev in exchange for financial grants and quick access to the latest developments. American weapons.

Two and a half years after the war, the Defense Department’s office still updates a file every week called “The Matrix” — a spreadsheet of countries known to possess Russian weapons along with their potential stockpiles.

It also includes what the United States is willing to ask them on behalf of Ukraine, and a list of incentives that Washington could offer in return thanks to the influx of funds authorized by Congress.

It is not known whether such efforts will continue under the next administration, but it is clear that military and civilian officials have considered the possibility that Ukraine will have to continue fighting without its largest benefactor.

Pentagon officials said that if the Trump administration decides to leave the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group, another country may take over the leadership role for the United States, continuing global efforts to supply weapons to Ukraine without Washington’s influence.