CNN
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Ukraine’s key allies are meeting in Brussels on Friday with a noticeable absence at the table: US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who is only attending virtually.
The Ukraine Defense Contact Group, which was created by former US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin during the Biden administration, is a group of roughly 50 nations that meet regularly to discuss bolstering military support for Ukraine.
It will mark the first time a US defense secretary has not attended the meeting in person since the group was established in 2022 just months after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which comes amid a series of policy shifts by the Trump administration seen as…
