Ukraine seeks western support to sustain Armed Forces after the war

Finance Minister Sergii Marchenko stated that Ukraine is negotiating with international partners to secure funding for the Ukrainian army after the active phase of the war ends. He made the remarks during a parliamentary speech on Friday.

"These negotiations are ongoing. One of the priorities set by the President of Ukraine for the government is to identify sources of stable financing for security and defense expenditures in the medium term. We are actively working to convince our partners to allocate their resources not only to non-military spending but also to meet the needs of the security and defense sector," Marchenko said.

He emphasized that the Ministry of Defense is already assessing future requirements, including the number of servicemen and the categories of personnel that should remain in service after the war.

"There is readiness and an understanding that this can be part of a broader security guarantee package. One of the guarantees is a capable Ukrainian army. We are actively working, there is mutual understanding, and I hope that in the near future we will be able to announce specific decisions," the minister added.

Currently, Ukraine uses all of its own revenues to maintain the army, while non-military expenditures are funded by foreign aid.

On August 29, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy outlined the key components of security guarantees for Ukraine, highlighting the maintenance of the current size of the Armed Forces as the main priority.