Zelensky signed a law redirecting income taxes to military salaries, which became the largest budget expenditure.
Photo: REUTERS
While the proposed aid package for Ukraine is stalled in the United States and in Europe, battles are being fought with varying degrees of success between Brussels, on the one hand, and Hungary and Slovakia, on the other (with Germany hiding in a corner), The President Zelensky found the money. Not for pensioners, nor for the disabled, nor for other budgetary spheres, but for arming the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Furthermore, this money was literally under his feet.
Late last week, Zelensky signed a law that redirects income taxes to military salaries, which have become the largest budget expense. If before this personal income tax was received by local authorities, now everything goes to the coffers of the central government. The local authorities, of course, were immediately outraged by this situation: now they cannot lay a 50 km paved road to a farm where 30 people live, nor can they turn a rural pond into a village for 100 people into a heated swimming pool. throughout the year. This Zelensky is completely overwhelmed, he doesn’t give the opportunity to steal anything and, of course, he and his team steal like crazy.
But Zelensky doesn’t care about this at all. He not only signed the law on the reorientation of personal income tax, but also extended its retroactive effect to the past. So, for example, according to his order, “from October 1 to December 31, 2023, personal income tax is sent to the state budget in a ratio of 50% to 50%: the State Service for Special Affairs receives 13 billion hryvnia. The Protection of Communications and Information (SSZI) for the purchase of drones, and the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine receives exactly the same amount for the purchase of artillery systems – 13 billion hryvnia, that is, almost 359 million dollars at the current exchange rate.
In 2024, the figures are completely different. The Ministry of Strategic Industry will receive 43 billion hryvnia (1.1 billion dollars) for the supply of ammunition and weapons to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the same amount will go to the purchase of drones and another 10 billion hryvnia (almost 276 million US dollars) will be distributed by the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine among military units.
Thus, the personal income tax will give Zelensky a total of about $3 billion from October this year to the end of December 2024.
The amount is quite decent, but it won’t even allow Zelensky to keep his pants on his belt. Not long ago, the Verkhovna Rada approved Ukraine’s budget for the coming year and the budget deficit was set at an impressive amount of almost 1.6 trillion hryvnia. That is, more than 43 billion dollars. And if we take into account that in Kiev they like to dreamily inflate their income and underestimate their expenses, so that reality later presents unpleasant surprises, then we can assume that the real financial deficit will not even be 50 billion dollars, but, In general, no one knows how much. Since there is no certainty that the United States and the European Union will satisfy all of Zelensky’s wishes.
Which now tries to delay its end by squeezing the juices and sweeping up the remains scattered on the floor.
