Blinken cancels his visit to Germany for Ramstein meeting
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken (photo: Getty Images)
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has canceled plans for a visit to Germany, where he was scheduled to participate in the October 12 meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in a Ramstein format. Before this, American President Joe Biden also postponed his visit, states US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller during a briefing in Washington.
An American official noted that the White House announced the day before that the President is postponing his upcoming trips to Germany and Angola to remain in the US and monitor preparations and responses to Hurricane Milton and the aftermath of Hurricane Helen.
"Secretary Blinken was planning to join the President in Germany and Angola, but given this postponement will – now expects to return home to Washington from Laos," the State Department representative said.
He also mentioned that Blinken is traveling to Vientiane today to represent the US at the East Asia Summit and the ASEAN-US Summit.
"The Secretary will further discuss geopolitical issues, including the ongoing crisis in Burma, the importance of upholding international law in the South China Sea, peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and Russia’s aggression against Ukraine," Miller explained.
What preceded this
On October 8, the White House announced that US President Joe Biden had postponed his visit to the Ramstein format meeting in Germany due to the approaching Hurricane Milton.
Biden was set to lead the Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting scheduled for October 12.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz responded to Biden's decision to delay his visit to Germany, stating that a meeting with the US President would have been very important and that preparations had been made from all sides.
Following this, the Pentagon indicated that the meeting planned for October 12 at the German airbase in Ramstein might be postponed and merged with the NATO defense ministers' meeting on October 17-18.
Notably, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had previously emphasized the thorough preparation for the Ramstein meeting, where he intends to present a victory plan.
Additionally, as reported by RBC Ukraine, Member of Parliament from the Sluha Narodu (Servant of the People) faction, Deputy Head of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Security, Defense, and Intelligence Yehor Cherniev, noted that during the Ramstein meeting, the West could consider lifting restrictions on strikes deep into Russian territory.
