Ukraine plans to maintain 500,000-strong army in ten years – economy minister

Ukraine aims to increase its gross domestic product (GDP) from $161 billion to $1 trillion in ten years, among other reasons, to maintain a 500,000-strong military, says Economy Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko on June 22.

The higher budget will also be used to develop the social sphere, education, and healthcare, Svyrydenko said at the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2023 in London.

Economic rules allow financing these activities without critically burdening the budget, said Svyrydenko.

She noted that NATO and the EU should play an important role in this plan as they can help Ukraine with security and institutional reforms.

According to the official, the country aims to reduce the redistribution of GDP through the budget to 25%.

Svyrydenko also noted that the local market for the reconstruction and development of Ukraine would be worth more than $500 billion over the next 20 years. In addition, the replacement of Russian and Chinese exports to the European Union also provides a market with a potential of more than $200 billion annually.

In addition to this, right now we are working on a competitive tax system and are focused on developing the labor market to cope with the challenges of Ukraine's post-war recovery, she summarized.

According to the Ministry of Finance, in 2022, Ukraine's GDP fell from over $200 billion to $161 billion. Growth to $1 trillion in ten years means an annual increase in Ukraine's nominal GDP in dollars of 20%.