US Defense Sec. to Visit Belgium, Poland, Lithuania This week

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will visit Belgium, Poland and Lithuania this week.

Kirby added, in a press conference at the US Department of Defense that Austin will participate in the meeting of NATO defense ministers in Brussels and will discuss "the Russian military buildup in and around Ukraine, according to CNN.

Kirby noted that Austin will meet with the defense ministers of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Brussels, as well as with military leaders and government officials in Poland and Lithuania..

Kirby revealed that Austin plans to meet his counterparts from Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia.