Ukraine lacks €23 billion for defense: Zelensky explained where they will look for money

Ukraine is facing a defense funding shortfall of about €23 billion. The funds are needed to purchase weapons, pay military personnel and families of the dead, and build up reserves with which the country should enter 2027. Kyiv is counting, in particular, on the acceleration of financial assistance from the European Union.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the situation, Politico reports.

Why the €23 billion deficit arose

According to Zelenskyy, one of the reasons for the current deficit is the decision of the Ministry of Defense to use in the first half of 2026 part of the funds that were originally planned for the second half of the year.

This decision was related to the urgent needs of the Defense Forces. The money, in particular, was directed to the purchase of fiber-optic drones, medium-range drones, and interceptor drones.

“At the beginning of the year, the ministry made a decision to use the funds that were to be allocated in the second half of the year in the first half,” the President explained.

Now, according to him, the used resources need to be compensated and additional funding for defense needs needs to be increased.

The situation was also complicated by the delay in funding within the EU loan package of 90 billion euros.

What does Ukraine need additional billions for

The state’s needs are not limited to the direct purchase of weapons.

According to Zelensky, Ukraine needs approximately 6.8–8.5 billion euros to ensure a “normal start” to 2027.

This involves the formation of necessary reserves and financing of priority defense needs at the beginning of next year.

Another approximately 17 billion euros are needed for payments to servicemen, support for the families of the deceased, and other defense sector expenses.

“A lot of money is needed,” the President stated.

Thus, Ukraine’s total additional needs are estimated at approximately €23 billion.

The EU has already approved €6.1 billion for armaments

On August 24, the European Commission approved new defense financing for Ukraine for €6.1 billion.

The funds provided under the EU loan program total €90 billion. They are planned to be directed to air and missile defense systems, missiles, ammunition and radars.

However, even these €6.1 billion do not allow to completely close the current defense budget deficit.

In total, within the loan package, Europe has provided Ukraine with €30 billion in 2026.

Zelensky will ask the EU to give money earlier

One option for solving the problem may be to accelerate the receipt of European funding.

The President said that he intends to appeal to partners with a request to provide part of the funds planned for a later period ahead of schedule.

“In fact, we need to postpone the allocation of the second part of European funds intended for Ukraine, and this is an extremely difficult task,” Zelensky noted.

Thus, Kyiv seeks to receive part of the future assistance earlier in order to close the financial gap that arose due to accelerated defense funding at the beginning of the year.

Funding also depends on reforms

A separate problem remains Ukraine’s implementation of reforms, which are associated with the provision of part of international financial assistance.

According to Politico, the Verkhovna Rada is delaying the adoption of 24 draft laws related to reforms and obtaining Western funding.

For Ukraine, the issue of quickly attracting additional resources is becoming critical not only to cover the current needs of the front, but also to prepare the defense sector by 2027.