Zelensky said Ukraine’s defense budget is short $27 billion

Zelensky said that about a third of this money, and possibly a little more, is needed for drones for January, February, and March. He warned that if orders and payments are not arranged in October and November, serious problems will arise in January and February.

According to the president, closing the deficit was one of the main topics of his talks with European partners this week. He also urged the European Commission to speed up the second tranche of the EU’s €90 billion loan and said he received a “positive and constructive” response from the European Union.

Ukraine first announced the budget gap in August, after it had to move defense spending originally planned for the second half of the year to an earlier date. This came amid Hungary’s delay of the EU loan for Kyiv, and the shortfall remains despite the €30 billion already promised by Europe this year.

In June, Ukrainian official Mykhailo Fedorov told POLITICO that among the purchases already made were, in particular, fiber-optic drones, medium-range strike drones, and interceptors. On Friday, EU countries agreed on the terms for allocating €6.6 billion from the European Peace Facility for Ukraine, said EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas.

According to her, €900 million will go to the EU military assistance mission for Ukraine, €1 billion — to joint purchases of weapons and equipment, and €4.7 billion — to reimbursements for member states. Some countries have already said they will send their share to Ukraine.

Sources

• Material: politico.eu