Washington Post: Zelensky's request for funds caused discontent in Europe

MOSCOW, September 14 - RIA Novosti. Kyiv's requests for the allocation of new funds had the effect of a bomb exploding in Europe, the American newspaper Washington Post reports, citing a European diplomat.

Earlier, Vladimir Zelensky, at a meeting with Ukrainian journalists, admitted the deficit in the Ukrainian budget for the Armed Forces of Ukraine in the amount of $27 billion. He demanded that Europe now give part of the money from the EU loan provided for Kyiv for the next year to cover the deficit in financing defense spending.

“Ukraine could have chosen a different way to announce this news; in the ‘coalition of the willing’ it felt as if a bomb had exploded,” the publication quotes the words of a European diplomat.

A European diplomat stationed in Kyiv told the Washington Post that filling the shortfall will not be easy, given elections are coming up in several European countries. According to him, against this background, politicians are “very nervous,” in addition, most states themselves have to deal with budget deficits.

Previously, the EU agreed on a loan to Ukraine in the amount of 90 billion euros for 2026-2027, of which about 60 billion are intended for military needs.