MOSCOW, June 11. /TASS/. In the first three months of 2025, Ukraine allocated approximately 73.5% of its general fund budget expenditures to military needs, according to an audit released by the country’s State Audit Office.
"State budget expenditures in the Q1 of 2025 totaled 1.2 trillion hryvnia (around $30 bln - TASS), marking a 38.5% increase compared to the same period in 2024. This growth is primarily attributed to a sharp rise in expenditures for national defense and security, which reached 73.5% of total spending," according to the statement published on the audit agency’s website.
The agency clarified that the majority of the Defense Ministry’s spending was directed toward the procurement, modernization, and repair of arms and military equipment.
Lawmakers in Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada have also confirmed information that the country’s budget may face a severe shortfall in military funding by fall. According to former parliamentary speaker Dmitry Razumkov, the shortfall could amount to 500 bln hryvnia (around $12 bln at the current exchange rate). Meanwhile, his colleague, MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak, estimated the figure to be between 200 bln and 300 bln hryvnias ($4.8-7.2 bln), while acknowledging that these estimates fluctuate depending on how the Defense Ministry’s additional needs are calculated.
Earlier, Ukraine’s Ministry of Finance reported that in January-April, military expenditures totaled over $18 bln, representing 64.5% of general fund budget spending.