The Ministry of Defence has run out of money for combat payments to the Armed Forces for September. This was announced on 6 September by the chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Budget Committee, Roksolana Pidlasa, reports [Kommersant].
The difficulties arose amid delays in US aid. Kyiv had to allocate funds for the purchase of weapons from its budget.
However, by 20 September, MPs have to vote for amendments to the state budget.
“I can’t tell you the date of the Verkhovna Rada meeting right now, but we expect this vote to take place around 17-18 September,” Pidlasa said.
In addition, the official assured that the necessary decisions to receive additional funds for the defence sector have already been developed.
“Defence spending of UAH 495 billion, which is proposed to be added in 2024, is something that cannot be abandoned, because it includes salaries for military personnel, rewards for ‘combat’, the purchase and repair of military equipment,” Roksolana Pidlasa said.
Where will Ukraine get money for defence spending?
To raise funds for the Defence Forces, the government plans to raise more money by selling domestic government bonds on the domestic market. Banks will buy government securities – their net deposits should increase from UAH 160 billion to UAH 216 billion by the end of the year.
The need to find additional funds for the army arose when the Parliament’s tax committee reduced the expected revenues from the tax bill from UAH 125 billion to UAH 30 billion after discussions with the Ministry of Finance, business, and the NBU.
In addition, Ukraine’s budget revenues are to be increased by half a trillion hryvnias to finance the army. The Cabinet of Ministers wants to raise about UAH 125 billion from tax increases. MPs propose to increase the revenue side by UAH 500 billion. In particular, due to the overfulfilment of the tax collection plan and the collection of excise duties on fuel and tobacco.