The prospect of a protracted war: all Ukrainians must pay taxes – economist

The annual budget of Ukraine has already been adopted: it significantly cuts spending on the Ministry of Defense. If in 2023 it amounted to 1 trillion 800 billion hryvnias, next year it will be 1 trillion 164 billion hryvnias. This is not enough for a country at war.

This was stated by Serhiy Yakubovsky, Doctor of Economics, at a briefing at the Ukraine-Odesa Media Center.

“We can already see the budget deficit for the next 2024. Government officials and the President believe that $13 billion can be found within the country and another $42 billion can come from our Western partners. At the same time, we know that only 25% of this money has been agreed upon, which means 12-13 billion dollars, and this is not enough for Ukraine. We will have to find money for the Ministry of Defense as well. And this is at least 15-20 billion dollars,” Yakubovsky said.

The economist emphasized that in 2024, Ukraine will have to change its economic model, rebuild on a military footing, otherwise it will not survive as a state.

“For example, the level of imports of expensive cars into the country has increased: in 2023, we imported significantly more of them than in 2021. No one drives them at the front, right? This is due to tax policy: it has not changed during the war, and a lot of money is in the shadows. The change in strategy means that all Ukrainians have to pay taxes. And the military fee should be equal to the tax fee. Now it is 1.5%, but it should be 18%. Otherwise, we will not win,” summarized Yakubovsky.

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