MOSCOW, February 12. /TASS/. Ukraine expects to receive $51 bln in external financing from its Western partners this year, Governor of the National Bank of Ukraine Andrey Pyshnyy said.
"There are well-grounded hopes that sufficient international assistance will continue. For 2026, our forecast stands at $51.4 bln, of which $3.1 bln has already been received in January," he was quoted on the regulator’s Telegram channel.
Ukraine’s budget has been drafted with a record deficit for several years. This year, it will amount to $47.5 bln (compared with $39.5 bln in 2025). Kiev is covering this deficit through loans and grants from Western partners. The country’s authorities acknowledge that domestic resources to fund the budget have been fully exhausted and that raising additional funds is becoming increasingly difficult. At the same time, Western partners, including the International Monetary Fund (IMF), insist on identifying new sources of revenue, in particular through raising existing taxes and introducing new ones.
Ruslan Gorbenko, a deputy of the Verkhovna Rada from the ruling Servant of the People party, warned that this year Ukraine’s budget will be 50% dependent on Western assistance and will not be able to independently cover even military expenditures.