Zelenskiy wants to raise military pay, asks for help from Europe – Bloomberg
25 July 2025 11:17
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy plans to ask European allies to help finance the increase in salaries of the Ukrainian military. Bloomberg reports, "Komersant Ukrainian" informs.
This decision is aimed at solving the problem of the growing shortage of recruits in the armed forces, the publication writes.
“Previously, the Europeans refused to provide funding for the salaries of our military, [they] only gave money for weapons. Our military can be the weapon that protects everyone,”
– zelensky said.
The Ukrainian government is seeking to motivate more volunteers by offering significant payments to those who sign military contracts, Bloomberg writes. This is in line with Russian tactics – Moscow has long offered large signing bonuses and high salaries to attract tens of thousands of people to its army each month.
“With Ukraine’s mobilization campaign increasingly losing popularity among a population weary of a war now in its fourth year, the Zelenskiy government wants to motivate more volunteers by offering substantial payouts to those who sign military contracts,”
– bloomberg writes.
Russia is using this approach to avoid a repeat of the public outcry that occurred when Putin ordered a partial mobilization a few months after the start of the 2022 invasion.
Increasing payments to the military will add to the burden on Ukraine’s state budget, which last year had a deficit of more than 20% of gross domestic product due to large-scale military spending. Therefore, in this case, the state relies on tens of billions of dollars in aid from foreign allies, who have so far rejected the idea of directly covering military spending.
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Is it realistic to get money for military salaries?
Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko says the government has no plans to raise taxes, despite the International Monetary Fund urging Kyiv to reduce its budget deficit. The IMF is providing Ukraine with a loan program worth about $16 billion.
According to Svyrydenko, global donors have allocated only half of the required $75 billion for the budget for the next two years. Zelenskiy noted that Ukraine needs $25 billion annually to produce drones, electronic warfare equipment, and missiles to defend itself against Russia, resulting in a $65 billion budget deficit next year.
According to Bloomberg, the President of Ukraine has begun discussing this issue with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and U.S. officials.
“This is a very complex topic,”
– zelensky added.
Defense production
Money is needed not only for salaries. Ukrainian companies have begun manufacturing interceptor drones, and $6 billion is urgently needed to ramp up production. Zelenskiy said that the US has agreed to buy drones of Ukrainian design and production, but he is seeking a contract worth between $10 billion and $30 billion. Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Rustem Umerov, and presidential adviser Oleksandr Kamyshyn have been tasked with leading these negotiations.
On the battlefield, according to the president, Ukrainian forces have made “significant progress” in holding back the Russian offensive. The situation in the Sumy region has improved significantly, although Russia continues to focus on advancing in this area as well as toward Pokrovsk. Dnipropetrovs’k region is also “very interesting for them”.
Zelenskyy also said that the third round of peace talks between Ukraine and Russia in Istanbul on Wednesday yielded some progress in preparing for a meeting with Putin, although Russian officials say there is little point in such a meeting without a prior agreement to end the war.
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