The key facts

  • Ukraine's state debt as of September 30, 2026 — 9,538.35 billion hryvnias ($212.6 billion), 130 times the 2006 figure
  • More than three-quarters of the debt consists of external obligations
  • Draft 2027 budget: a $37 billion deficit, borrowing up to $276 billion, $108.3 billion for the Armed Forces of Ukraine

Debt grew 130-fold over two decades

Ukraine's state and state-guaranteed debt as of September 30, 2026 amounted to 9,538.35 billion hryvnias, or $212.6 billion — these figures are given in a briefing by the country's finance ministry, which is cited by Gazeta.Ru with reference to an analysis by RIA Novosti. For comparison: at the end of the third quarter of 2006, the combined external and internal state debt stood at 73.288 billion hryvnias, meaning the figure grew 130-fold over 20 years.

Debt structure and the 2027 budget

More than three-quarters of Ukraine's debt consists of external obligations. The draft budget for 2027 envisages a deficit of $37 billion and an increase in government borrowing to $276 billion; $108.3 billion is planned to be allocated for financing the Armed Forces of Ukraine. At the same time, Roman Yermolychev, Deputy Head of Ukraine's Finance Ministry, said back in September that a larger sum was needed for military spending — $175 billion.

Dependence on external financing

The outlet notes that Kyiv is in constant heavy dependence on external financing: the allocation of new aid packages in the West comes after lengthy discussions, and partners increasingly point to the need to find sources of self-financing. Earlier, according to Gazeta.Ru, it was reported how many times Ukraine's state debt had grown during Volodymyr Zelensky's presidency; the specific figures of that calculation are not given in the new publication.