Koretsky reported a “strict austerity regime” for the budget and announced a large-scale audit of the Ministry of Defense

Prime Minister Serhiy Koretsky reported that the government has introduced a strict regime of savings of budget funds not allocated for defense needs.

He stated this during a speech in the Verkhovna Rada on September 1.

According to the Prime Minister, the government has already found UAH 70 billion, which will be fully allocated to the needs of the Defense Forces. At the same time, he emphasized that all necessary social obligations, including the payment of pensions and salaries, will be carried out in the usual manner.

Koretsky also called on MPs to join the process of preparing the state budget for 2027 and proceed from the principle of "maximum saving of every budget hryvnia".

Koretsky confirmed that there is currently a $27 billion deficit in the defense budget, which Ukraine is asking partners to cover with emergency funding.

"Work is still ongoing on these funds, and we need to convince partners together to help cover this deficit. It is obvious that we can count on additional funding only by jointly fulfilling our previous obligations. And this is absolutely possible," Koretsky added.

Separately, the Prime Minister announced an audit of the Ministry of Defense within a month to ensure the most efficient use of budget funds. According to the Prime Minister, the government will analyze the justification of each expense.

"We will analyze, study every hryvnia, but war is changing significantly, war is becoming significantly more expensive — this is reality," Koretsky noted.

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