Koretskyi and EU Economy Commissioner to discuss Ukraine's defense budget shortfall

Ukrainian Prime Minister Serhii Koretskyi is set to hold a video call on September 7 with European Commissioner for Economy Valdis Dombrovskis. According to European Pravda's correspondent in Brussels, citing anonymous sources, the call is scheduled for 11:00 Brussels time (noon Kyiv time) and is expected to last around 30 minutes.

The two officials will discuss EU support for Ukraine's defense budget, including Ukraine's financing needs and an assessment of the shortfall in funding for defense spending. The European Commission expects to release a statement or social media post about the outcome of the talks around 13:00 Kyiv time.

IMF chief to meet European Commission

On the same day, European Commission representatives are also scheduled to meet with International Monetary Fund Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva. That meeting is expected to address an assessment of Ukraine's budget deficit, based on findings from an IMF mission's visit to Kyiv in early September.

Background

The EU has previously noted that a 90-billion-euro aid package will cover only two-thirds of Ukraine's needs for 2026-2027. EU officials also said Ukraine has not submitted a formal request to advance in 2026 the portion of the 90-billion-euro loan originally allocated for 2027, which would help close this year's 27-billion-euro defense budget gap.

On August 24, the European Commission approved 6.1 billion euros in defense procurement for Ukraine under the 90-billion-euro loan program. It was previously reported that the EU plans to disburse around 20 billion euros to Ukraine by the end of 2026, with new tranches possibly arriving in the coming weeks.