Ukraine needs another $27 billion for defense
Ukraine needs to find an additional $27 billion to meet the needs of the Defense Forces. Prime Minister Serhiy Koretskyi stated that the government intends to raise part of the funds domestically and secure the remainder with the support of the EU, NATO countries, and other international partners.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Serhiy Koretsky held a meeting with the Ministry of Defense regarding the search for funds to cover the Defense Forces’ additional need of $27 billion. Part of the money is needed immediately. Specifically, this involves prepayments for weapons and other supplies that Ukraine expects to receive as early as the first quarter of 2027. According to Koretsky, one source of funding will be the internal reallocation of the budget. The Ministry of Finance must find ways to reallocate funds within the framework of existing budget programs.
In other words, the government plans to obtain part of the necessary amount directly from the Ukrainian budget by adjusting the priorities of certain expenditures. At the same time, Ukraine is counting on assistance from international partners. Separately, the government is working with the European Union. In parallel, direct negotiations are underway at the level of defense ministries with NATO countries and other partner states regarding the financing of Ukraine’s additional needs.
The EU already has a separate financial mechanism to support Ukraine. The Ukraine Support Loan provides for up to 90 billion euros for 2026–2027, a significant portion of which is to be allocated to defense needs. In September, the European Commission also approved €6.1 billion for the procurement of air defense and missile defense systems, ammunition, drones, and electronic warfare equipment for Ukraine.
Another area of focus is unlocking external financing, which depends on Ukraine’s fulfillment of agreements with international partners. Koretsky noted that this requires the adoption of a series of laws and other decisions. This involves implementing the plan previously presented by the government. “At the same time, we must unlock external funding tied to the fulfillment of agreements with international partners. To do this, we need to pass specific laws and adopt decisions within the framework of the plan presented by the government. We are working closely with Parliament on a daily basis,” the prime minister said.
Thus, the government expects to cover the additional funding needs from several sources at once: through the redistribution of funds within the country, EU support, negotiations with NATO countries and other partners, as well as by unlocking previously allocated external funding. At the same time, Ukraine needs part of these funds not in the future, but right now—to pay for orders that are intended to ensure deliveries to the Armed Forces in early 2027. This is evident from the Prime Minister’s statement.
