Ukraine's PM puts early-September tax loss from Russian strikes at UAH 70 billion
Ukrainian Prime Minister Serhiy Koretsky said roughly UAH 70 billion in tax revenues may fail to reach the budget because of Russian attacks on business, warning the figure could rise as strikes continue daily. He outlined a package of responses including offering state-owned premises to businesses, decentralising logistics, negotiating faster border crossings, and setting aside about USD 1 billion for a war-risk insurance fund it hopes international partners will multiply.
Key points
- Koretsky said roughly UAH 70 billion in tax revenues may not reach the budget due to Russian attacks on business, as an early-September estimate.
- He warned the figure could grow because strikes are continuing daily.
- The government has audited premises belonging to the State Property Fund, state enterprises and ministries and is offering the warehouse and production space to businesses.
- The government is preparing to decentralise logistics, following the energy-sector model, with a plan involving retailers and logistics companies.
- Ukraine is negotiating with neighbouring countries on a flexible, fast border-crossing system.
- The Cabinet of Ministers plans a separate budget line of about USD 1 billion for war-risk insurance and expects international partners to multiply that sum.
- The stated goal of the reserve is to cover 40–50% of losses from attacks with a simplified procedure and rapid response.
Why it matters
The UAH 70 billion figure gives a concrete number to the fiscal cost of Russian strikes on Ukrainian business and signals how large a budget shortfall the government is bracing for as attacks continue. The accompanying package — state premises for displaced companies, decentralised logistics, faster border crossings and a war-risk insurance reserve — points to a coordinated mitigation strategy rather than a one-off emergency step, and the explicit expectation that international partners will multiply the planned USD 1 billion contribution turns the announcement into a fundraising pitch as well.
What happened
Speaking at the YES–2026 conference in a conversation with The Economist editor-in-chief Zanny Minton Beddoes, Prime Minister Serhiy Koretsky put the early-September estimate of tax revenues that may not reach the budget because of Russian attacks on business at roughly UAH 70 billion, cautioning that the figure could rise as strikes continue daily. He set out a series of government responses: a full audit of premises held by the State Property Fund, state enterprises and ministries, with the resulting warehouse and production space offered to businesses; a plan to decentralise logistics on the model of the energy sector, drawn up with retailers and logistics companies; negotiations with neighbouring countries on a flexible, fast border-crossing system; and a separate budget line of about USD 1 billion for war-risk insurance, intended to build a reserve covering 40–50% of losses from attacks with a simplified procedure and rapid response. Koretsky also said the government expects international partners to multiply that USD 1 billion contribution, and separately noted that Ukraine is significantly better prepared for Russian attacks this winter than a year earlier.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
All four supplied articles are Ukrainian sources and lead with the headline fiscal loss — roughly UAH 70 billion in uncollected taxes — attributed directly to Russian attacks on business. They centre Koretsky as the named speaker, foreground his role as prime minister and tie the statement to the YES–2026 conference setting. The package of responses (state-property audit, logistics decentralisation, border-crossing negotiations, war-risk insurance) is presented as a coordinated plan rather than a single isolated announcement, and the framing stresses continued daily attacks and the risk that the UAH 70 billion figure will grow, underlining an ongoing rather than one-time economic shock.
Background
The UAH 70 billion figure is an early-September estimate that may rise because strikes continue daily. The plan to decentralise logistics is explicitly modelled on how the energy sector was decentralised. The war-risk insurance reserve is intended to cover 40–50% of damages through a simplified procedure with rapid response. Koretsky separately said Ukraine is significantly better prepared for Russian attacks this winter than a year earlier.