MOSCOW, March 26. /TASS/. Vladimir Zelensky stated in an interview with the Time magazine that Ukraine's budget is inadequate for financing the army, forcing Kiev to rely on European support.
"If there is a ceasefire, some kind of pause, how long can the army hold out? <...>. But they need rest, rotation, reserves, salaries. That’s a real problem, I think, because the army was always smaller than it is now. And when the army is three times bigger than it was, then it needs to be financed. The budget of Ukraine will not be enough," he said.
In his opinion, there should be special programs to allocate funds for the Ukrainian army. "Europe needs to finance it. Ideally, Europe and America. But in the present circumstances, I would rely more on Europe," he said.
On March 25, the Verkhovna Rada parliament approved a law on a sharp increase in salaries for ministries’ employees, which will be higher than those of the military. Previously, the salaries of Ukrainian government workers were 3-10 times higher than the national average. Verkhovna Rada deputy Alexey Goncharenko (listed as a terrorist and extremist in Russia) criticized Ukraine's 2025 budget, approved with a deficit of $37.2 billion, or 19.4% of GDP, for supporting roads, and "the exorbitant salaries of officials," but not the army.
On March 18, the Presidents of Russia and the United States, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump, discussed by phone the situation in Ukraine, conditions for preventing escalation, and some international topics. According to the Kremlin, Putin agreed with the US leader's proposal on the mutual refusal of the parties to the conflict in Ukraine from attacks on energy infrastructure. According to the White House, the parties also agreed to begin technical negotiations to introduce a "ceasefire on the Black Sea, on a complete ceasefire and permanent peace." The key condition for resolving the conflict should be "complete cessation of foreign military assistance and the provision of intelligence to Kiev," the Kremlin said.