Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is planning to ask European allies to help fund salary increases for Ukrainian military personnel fighting Russia’s invasion in order to alleviate the shortage of recruits.

Source:Bloomberg 

Quote from Zelenskyy:"Previously, Europeans refused to provide funding for the salaries of our military personnel, only for weapons. Our service members themselves can be the weapon that protects everyone."

"Zelenskyy’s government wants to motivate more volunteers by offering substantial payments for those who sign military contracts," Bloomberg writes.

"Russia has long offered large signing bonuses and high salaries to lure tens of thousands to its army each month, seeking to avoid any repeat of a spike in public anxiety when President Vladimir Putin ordered a partial draft a few months into the 2022 invasion," the report said.

"Increasing payments to soldiers would add to strains on Ukraine’s state budget, which had a deficit exceeding 20% of gross domestic product last year amid massive military spending," Bloomberg reports.

"The war-torn nation relies on tens of billions of dollars in aid from its foreign allies, who have so far rejected the idea of directly covering military expenses," the report adds.

Bloomberg notes that although the International Monetary Fund, which oversees a US$16 billion loan programme, is urging Kyiv to reduce the budget deficit, the government has no plans to raise taxes.

As Ukrainian Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko told Bloomberg News, global donors have provided only half of the approximately US$75 billion needed for the budget over the next two years.

Background:

• Following the adoption of budget amendments this year, the planned deficit will amount to US$42 billion, which cannot be fully covered by partners, according to Roksolana Pidlas, head of the parliamentary budget committee. "The need for external financing will remain large – around, or even more than US$40 billion," she wrote on Facebook.
• As previously reported by the Ministry of Finance, general budget fund expenditure in June 2025 totalled UAH 337.4 billion (approx. US$8 billion), with UAH 1.9 trillion (US$45 billion) for the first half of the year – a 21.5% increase compared to the same period last year.
• The Verkhovna Rada passed amendments to the 2025 state budget at first reading, boosting expenditure by UAH 450 billion (US$11 billion).
• Earlier, it was reported that Ukraine chronically lacks funds to finance the war: in 2026, the uncovered financing need may reach a trillion hryvnias (US$24 billion).

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