"In absolute figures, by the end of the year a total amount of the public debt can reach record-breaking 6.4 trillion hryvnia - $173 billion. Even though a part of western assistance comes as grants, the most part of the money from the US, the EU, and other countries and organizations are just credits. And they will need to be paid sooner or later," Azarov stated on social media.
Ukraine's state budget is formed on the basis of the Western help, which allows to estimate the debt at 120% of the country's gross domestic product, Azarov added.
"But if we look at our pure profits, the debt will be 300%. Yes, a group of creditors granted Ukraine a deferral on the external debt payments until 2027. But the deferral does not mean that the debt will not need to be paid. Along with the debt, Ukraine's expenditures on the debt service also grow. This year they will double," Azarov's post read.
On March 2, the Ukrainian Ministry of Finance stated that the country's sovereign debt had exceeded $116 billion.
In November, Ukrainian Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko said that Ukraine's budget faces a deficit of around $5 billion every month following the start of the military conflict with Russia in January 2022, with two thirds of the money being received through foreign loans and grants, and three quarters spent on military needs.
According to the National Bank of Ukraine, the total amount of official financial, military and humanitarian assistance announced and provided to Ukraine in 2022 has exceeded $120 billion.
The US and its partners have provided billions in security, economic and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine since the launch of Russia’s special military operation, including drones, tanks, artillery and other weapons.