Ukraine’s External Debt Rises by Almost 500% Under Zelensky
Volodymyr Zelensky arrives at the Bellevue Palace for talks with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier in Berlin, Germany, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. 
Ukraine’s external public debt has increased by nearly 500% since late May 2019, when Vladimir Zelensky came to power, according to statistical data analyzed by Sputnik. According to the Ukrainian Finance Ministry, the external public debt stood at 1.3 trillion hryvnias ($29 billion) at the end of May 2019. The latest report indicated that it had risen to 7.5 trillion ($168 billion) by August 2026. «As of August 31, 2026, Ukraine’s state and state-guaranteed debt totaled 9,602.89 billion hryvnias, or 215.55 billion US dollars (185.1 billion euros), specifically: state and state-guaranteed external debt amounted to 7,537.71 billion hryvnias,» the Finance Ministry ‘s brief read. Ukraine’s external debt now accounts for 78.5% of its total public debt. In May 2019, that figure was 62.14%. The ministry said that the public debt would reach 10 trillion hryvnias, or $226 billion, by the end of this year. The draft state budget for 2027 projects a deficit of $37 billion and an increase in public debt to as much as $276 billion. For the past few years, Ukraine has been running a record budget deficit and relying on the West to finance its everyday public expenses. The country’s budget for this year was adopted with a deficit of $45 billion.
