Ukraine will need at least $120 billion next year if the war unleashed by Russia continues, in order to hold the front line and minimize the number of lives lost among its defenders, Ukrainian Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal reiterated his July assessment at the annual YES conference “How to End the War,” organized by the Pinchuk Foundation in Kyiv on September 12-13.
“If the war ends, we will need a slightly smaller amount to simply keep our army in good shape in case of secondary aggression from the Russian side,” Shmyhal said.
“The economics of war show that if we spend less money than Russia, then we start paying with our territories and, most importantly, with our lives. Therefore, we need to attract all the necessary resources, all the necessary money,” he stressed.
The defense minister acknowledged that after three and a half years, many taxpayers are exhausted from spending such a huge amount of money, so he spoke in favor of using frozen Russian assets until Russia compensates for all the expenses that Ukraine and all countries have incurred during this wartime.
In his opinion, such a solution can be found even without direct confiscation, because the legal complexity of this procedure is understandable.
“We need to have a stable source of funding to finance Ukraine’s defense and reconstruction. Therefore, the number one issue for all of us is to find a political and legal solution for the use of frozen Russian assets,” Shmygal said.
He highlighted three main priorities: supplying the Defense Forces with more FPV drones, more robotic systems, and artillery shells, including long-range ones; sky defense—both with Patriots against ballistic missiles and with interceptor drones against drones; long-range weapons—Ukrainian-made drones and missiles.
“If our Western partners provide us with more deep strike systems and equipment, we will be absolutely delighted. But we can produce our own deep strike weapons, and again, we need funding,” the defense minister said.
He explained that such long-range strikes put the most pressure on the Russian economy and society, as well as directly on Putin, because they allow for the destruction of their oil refineries and military production infrastructure.
“We need to produce more, we need to continue carpet bombing operations, when all the planes in the Moscow region are grounded day after day. This is very inconvenient for the Moscow elite, and they are directly telling Putin: let’s stop this war because we can’t fly,” Shmygal added.
According to him, he conveys these needs during meetings in the Rammstein format.
In addition, the defense minister announced the need to create a so-called Kill Zone, which is currently being formed on the front line, to prevent aggression from recurring in the future. “These are lines of drones covering 10, 15, or even 30 km of territory,” he explained.
According to estimates by Alexander Parashchiy, head of the analytical department at investment company Concorde Capital, defense and security spending in 2024 amounted to approximately $95 billion, while this year he predicted it would grow to approximately $100-105 billion. Approximately half of this amount comes from the budget, while the other half has been provided by partners until recently.
In addition, Ukraine attracts about $40 billion in external financial assistance annually for non-military purposes in order to be able to finance military needs from the budget. For next year, Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko has estimated the need for external financing of the state budget deficit at $45 billion, of which EUR16 billion has not yet been secured.
CONFERENCE, SHMYHAL, WAR, ЄС
The upcoming Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC-2025) on July 10-11 this year in Rome will be attended by over two thousand participants, including almost 100 different delegations and 700 enterprises, said Italy’s Special Envoy for Ukraine Recovery Davide La Cecilia.
He pointed out at the Ukrainian House on the margins of the World Economic Forum in Davos on Wednesday that URC-2025 will feature conferences focusing on four areas: business, human capital, regional development and European integration.
According to La Cecilia, the conference will be held on two levels: the first will be organized panel discussions, while the second will be a recovery forum and a business fair.
As the Ambassador informed, the latter will feature 120 stalls, including 30 presented by Ukrainian companies, 30 by Italian companies and another 30 by international companies.
Cecilia noted that the Italian business community has expressed an active desire to participate in the Conference, and at the moment the process of consultations with them has started.
The Ambassador also said that in preparation for URC-2025 on March 5 in Milan will be held an event in cooperation with the Italian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, which will be attended by a hundred Ukrainian companies, a hundred Italian and a hundred representatives of the international community. “We will talk about housing construction, about energy,” the special envoy added.
Cecilia also indicated that further on April 2, Kiev will host a civil society event, and the next event is scheduled for May 10 in Verona.
Ukrainian world heavyweight champion according to the WBA, WBO, WBC and IBO, Oleksandr Usyk, and British boxer Tyson Fury held their first press conference before the rematch for the world heavyweight title, the meeting took place in London on Wednesday, October 23, reports Suspilne Sport.
Usyk appeared in front of the audience in the image of “Hitman” from the popular media franchise. He took the stage with a briefcase containing posters of his fight against Fury – the Briton signed them at the request of his opponent.
When asked about his motivation before the rematch, the Ukrainian explained: “Only my regimen, my concentration is my motivation. That’s enough”.
Fury, for his part, reminded that the Briton has won all the rematches in his career so far. The former WBC champion hopes to be composed in the second fight with Usyk and rehabilitate himself for his debut defeat.
It is reported that the second fight between Usyk and Fury will take place on December 21 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Three major heavyweight titles will be at stake: the WBC, WBA, and WBO versions.
A map of international partnerships of Ukrainian cities and towns was presented at the International Conference on Ukraine’s Recovery, which is taking place in Germany on June 11-12, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
“During the International Conference on the reconstruction of Ukraine presented a map of international partnerships of Ukrainian cities and towns. The database was prepared by the Association of Ukrainian Cities together with the Council of European Municipalities and Regions,” he wrote in his Telegram channel on Wednesday.
Klitschko noted that now only a third of Ukrainian communities have partners in other countries, of which 200 – among municipalities in Germany.
“Today at the conference discussed the further development of such cooperation. Because, as our partners emphasize, it is the cooperation of cities, strengthening local self-government is key to strengthening European democracy. And also – for the future reconstruction of Ukraine,” – wrote Klitschko.
https://interfax.com.ua/news/regions/993178.html
More than 2,000 people from over 60 countries will participate in the Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC-2024), which Germany and Ukraine will co-host on June 11 and 12 in Berlin, the German Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Economic Cooperation and Development said in a press release on Friday.
“Together with numerous partners from politics, business, civil society and municipalities, we want to use the Ukraine Recovery Conference to do everything we can to support Ukraine on its path of reform and recovery. Our common message is clear: we stand firmly by Ukraine’s side and support it with all our strength – as long as it needs us,” German Foreign Minister Annalena Berbock was quoted as saying in the release.
She noted that Ukraine is defending the free European way of life with great determination, and Germany and the EU, for their part, continue to provide Ukraine with all-round support: economic, humanitarian and political, as well as supplying much-needed weapons.
“We are doing everything possible so that Ukraine can soon have a seat at the negotiating table in the European Union,” the German foreign minister added.
German Development Minister Svenja Schulze emphasized that even in the current wartime, Ukraine needs to constantly rebuild homes, water pipes, hospitals and power grids.
“Surrendering is not an option. People want to continue living in their country, and for that they need electricity, water and a roof over their heads. The reconstruction conference in Berlin is a strong message of solidarity. Partners from around the world are joining forces to support Ukraine’s reconstruction,” the minister said.
According to her, this task is too big to be solved by governments alone, so companies, civil society and municipalities have been invited to the conference.
It is specified that more than 2,000 conference participants represent approximately equal parts of three groups: governments and international organizations; businesses and civil society; and municipalities and regions. In particular, more than 600 representatives of Ukrainian, German and international companies from such sectors as energy, healthcare, logistics and armament, as well as representatives of municipalities and civil society will present their work in the framework of URC-2024.
“The goal of the conference is to bring together this wide range of activities and target them to address Ukraine’s short- and long-term recovery needs,” Schulze summarized.
The release announces the launch at the upcoming conference of a new initiative for skilled workers, a skills alliance for Ukraine, and an alliance for SMEs, as well as a host of other cooperative agreements.
It is pointed out that for the first time at the Ukraine Recovery Conference, Germany, as co-organizer, is focusing on social and community recovery in areas such as education, health, and municipal and regional recovery.
“To ensure Ukraine’s early accession to the EU, the focus is also on the necessary reforms in Ukraine. In some 30 panels, participants will address this wide range of topics under the motto “United in Defense. United in Recovery. Stronger Together,” the release noted.
According to the currently available program, the conference will be attended, in particular, by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, foreign ministers of Germany, Italy, Great Britain, France, Poland and the U.S. special envoy for Ukraine’s recovery, as well as heads of leading international financial organizations.
The Ukraine Reconstruction Conference in Berlin is the third reconstruction conference to be held since Russia’s full-scale war of aggression against Ukraine began in 2022. In July 2022 in Lugano, Switzerland, conference participants agreed on guiding principles for Ukraine’s recovery: the recovery process should be reform-oriented, transparent, democratic and sustainable. The 2023 Ukraine Recovery Conference in London focused on mobilizing the private sector. In 2025, Italy will co-host the recovery conference with Ukraine.
On the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue summit, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with the heads of leading Singaporean investment companies, the press service of the Ukrainian president reports.
“The event was attended by the heads of Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC, Temasek Holdings, Wilmar International, the Singapore Business Federation, Blackstone Singapore, telecommunications operator SingTel, Universal Success Enterprises, and construction company Meinhardt Group,” the statement said.
During the meeting, Zelensky emphasized that the Ukrainian economy, even in difficult conditions of war, finds ways to develop and grow, adapting to new circumstances.
In addition, Zelenskyy expressed gratitude to Singaporean businessmen who continue to work in Ukraine and keep their jobs.
The President also emphasized that there is great potential for further development of Ukrainian-Singaporean trade cooperation, especially in the field of technology and innovation.
Zelenskyy also reaffirmed Ukraine’s commitment to creating additional attractive incentives for investors.
“The Head of State invited Singaporean investors to take part in a joint conference with the EU on the restoration, reform and modernization of the Ukrainian economy to be held in Berlin. A program for mobilizing international financial support, implementing long-term projects and creating attractive conditions for investing in Ukraine’s economy will be presented there,” the statement said.
