MOSCOW, August 28. /TASS/. Ukraine's national debt has grown by $3.2 bln in three months to $155.36 bln, the country's Finance Ministry reported.
At the same time, the state and guaranteed external debt as of July 31 reached $112.92 bln, which is 72.69% of the total.
Ukrainian Prime Minister Denis Shmygal said earlier that Ukraine will need an additional $15 bln in 2025 to cover its budget deficit. Shmygal added that Ukraine expects to solve this problem by receiving $50 bln from profits from frozen Russian assets in accounts in G7 countries.
He also noted that Ukraine is facing an urgent need to find an additional 500 bln hryvnia (about $12.1 bln) by the end of 2024 to ensure its defense capability. "We now have a critical need to raise additional money for our defense capabilities," he said, adding, "This amounts to hundreds of billions of hryvnia. Proposals to tax 500 bln hryvnia have been submitted to the parliament."
Shmygal clarified that 500 bln hryvnia are necessary expenditures specifically for defense and do not include funds needed to finance other needs of the state.
He also said that since February 2022, Ukraine has received more than $100 bln from Western partners. "In two and a half years, thanks to the initiatives of the president, the work of the parliament and the government, we have managed to receive more than $100 bln," he noted.
Ukraine has drawn up a budget with a record deficit for two years in a row, and expects to cover most of it with aid from Western partners. By 2024, it will amount to $43.9 bln. Meanwhile, in the West, the allocation of new aid packages occurs after lengthy discussions, and partners often warn that Kiev needs to intensify the search for sources of self-financing. The Ukrainian authorities are considering options for increasing taxes, as well as excise duties on fuel and tobacco.