Ukraine Plans to Attract More Volunteers to Army With European Support
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi plans to ask European allies to help finance a salary increase for the military to attract more volunteers.
This was reported by Bloomberg.
“Previously, the Europeans refused to provide funding for salaries for our military, only for weapons. Our military can be the weapon that protects everyone,” Zelenskyi told the newspaper in Kyiv on Thursday.
As the mobilization campaign in Ukraine is becoming less and less popular with the population, the government wants to strengthen the recruitment campaign by offering substantial payments to volunteers, the newspaper said.
However, the increase in payments to soldiers will increase the burden on the state budget of Ukraine. The deficit of which last year exceeded 20% of gross domestic product amid high military spending.
According to Zelenskyi, Ukraine needs $25 billion annually to produce drones, electronic warfare equipment, and missiles to defend itself against Russia. This will lead to a budget deficit of up to $65 billion next year.
The President said that Ukraine had already started discussing that issue with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, French President Emmanuel Macron, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, as well as with American officials.
As an example, the President said that Ukrainian companies had started producing interceptor drones, and additional investments that are urgently needed to increase production.
Zelenskyi also told reporters that he was seeking to sign a contract worth $10 to $30 billion to sell Ukrainian drones to the United States. In mid-July, Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko announced that a political agreement had been reached on investments in the production and sale of Ukrainian drones to the United States.
“There is a political agreement. We are talking about investments in expanding production in Ukraine. Now the new Defence Minister Shmyhal will develop this proposal with the American side. Then there will be technical work,” she said.
As a reminder, in the first six months of the year, partner countries have already pledged to provide Ukraine with $43 billion (€35 billion) in military aid in 2025.
At the same time, in 2024, the Alliance allocated more than €50 billion to support Ukraine. That is, the pace of aid disbursement accelerated in 2025.
