Koretskyi’s stark presentation on Ukraine’s finances comes as ‘cold shower’ for officials
Read NV on Google
Serhii Koretskyi was counting on the fact that by openly demonstrating the scale of the problem, he would be able to achieve constructive results, writes UP (Photo: Serhii Koretskyi / Telegram)
Ukraine’s new prime minister, Serhii Koretskyi, is not seeking close personal ties with lawmakers or sugarcoating the country’s financial situation, Ukrainska Pravda reported on Sept. 3.
According to sources from the Servant of the People party, after his appointment, Koretskyi began closely examining the resources at his disposal and the needs he had to address. Ukrainska Pravda's sources said he was "quite shocked" by what he found.
"Koretskyi did not hide his shock and, without much ceremony, began telling our lawmakers the truth. They are not used to that. The last time they were this frightened was when [Oleksiy] Honcharuk (former prime minister) spoke to them at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic," one Servant of the People lawmaker told Ukrainska Pravda.
Throughout August, Koretskyi attended meetings at the Office of the President and the Verkhovna Rada, presenting tables and charts. The article's author said many lawmakers were left with "unforgettable impressions" from the meetings.
He also prepared a presentation for President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The slides showed a "frightening financial gap" between the resources available to Ukraine and the spending the government must finance by the end of the year. Ukrainska Pravda said the gap amounted to tens of billions of dollars.
Former Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko had sought to explain complex financial problems to officials as gently as possible, avoiding unnecessary tension. Koretskyi's presentation came as a wake-up call for many government officials, Ukrainska Pravda reported.
The new prime minister focused on demonstrating the scale of the problems and securing constructive cooperation from the Verkhovna Rada. He actively urged lawmakers to support European integration measures and other legislation tied to international financing.
The Rada put some of the bills to a vote on Sept. 1 but rejected nearly all of them the same day.
The developments could serve as Koretskyi's first difficult lesson in the realities of governing, the article's author wrote.
Ukrainska Pravda also reported that the president "was stunned" by the scale of the budget deficit after the prime minister's briefing.
Ukraine could receive $12.7 billion in international support by the end of 2026, with the funding tied to specific legislation that parliament must pass. The requirements are part of four major support programs: the Ukraine Facility, the Ukraine Support Loan and cooperation programs with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, Roksolana Pidlasa, head of the Verkhovna Rada's Budget Committee, said on Aug. 27.
On Aug. 29, Ukrainian Defense Minister Yevhenii Khmara said the country currently faced a $27 billion shortfall in defense funding, but the ministry already had options for addressing the issue.
On Sept. 1, Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi said the government was introducing "strict austerity measures for budget funds that are not allocated to defense needs."
On Sept. 2, Pidlasa said state budget revenues from January through August 2026 were 33.1 billion hryvnias below the planned level.
The military war may be swinging in our favor, but the information war continues.
Just as an army needs soldiers, so does a free society need its journalists to ensure that people have access to honest, trustworthy voices to understand the world around them.
For the past five years, The New Voice of Ukraine has been working tirelessly to push back against Russian narratives and defend democracy. But we cannot do it alone.
Please consider supporting us on Patreon for just $5 a month – your donation does directly to supporting journalists and ensuring that this front of the infowar says solid and defended.
Thank you.
Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Google News
