Zelensky’s ‘one thousand’ benefit will cost Ukraine’s budget 5 billion- reports
Source: Yaroslav Zheleznyak, Oleksiy Honcharenko
The Ukrainian government will spend 5 billion hryvnias to fund the so-called “Zelensky’s thousand” benefit program this year, with plans to double that amount to 10 billion hryvnias in 2025. Promoted as a financial support to Ukrainians, the one-off program has sparked controversy over where the money is going to come from.
According to MP Yaroslav Zheleznyak, the idea can prove costly for the country’s budget.
“Despit the ongoing missile threats, the Ministry of Economy has gone ahead with this idiotic idea of the 1,000 hryvnias’ [payments]. This year, it will cost 5 billion hryvnias, and next year, 10 billion,” he said. “These are not funds from our [international] partners, but from the unemployment fund.”
Fellow MP Oleksiy Honcharenko has also been critical of Zelensky’s plan. He claimed that the program will be covered with the money earlier alloted for the national “cashback” initiative, which can throw a wrench in the idea of propping up domestic businesss.
“If the funds are not allocated, the December cashback will not be issued,” Honcharenko noted, suggesting that the idea of cashback is slowly fading away.
Earlier this month, Roksalana Pidlasa, who chairs the parliamentary budget committee, confirmed that the funds for the “Zelensky’s thousand” would indeed be drawn from the unemployment fund.
On October 6, the Administrative Cassation Court within the Supreme Court of Ukraine continued hearing case No. 990/80/25, in which the fifth President and leader of the party “European Solidarity”, Petro Poroshenko, seeks to have Presidential Decree No. 81/2025 from February 12, 2025 — enacting sanctions by the decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) — declared illegal and annulled. The plaintiff claims the document was falsified and that the sanctions are a tool of political persecution of the opposition, contrary to international norms. Government representatives deny the allegations and insist their actions were lawful. Journalists of Bukvy were present at the hearing.
Rinat Akhmetov’s Metinvest Group has completed the construction of an upgraded underground NATO Role 2 hospital in one of the hottest sectors of the frontline. This is the second stabilization point established under the Steel Front initiative in cooperation with the Medical Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The new facility, funded by Metinvest with an investment of UAH 21 million, is more secure than the first one thanks to its deeper location underground (over 6 meters) and additional fortifications.
Five armored vehicles “Kozak” have received a new mission – thanks to the support of Metinvest, they have been upgraded to full-fledged command and staff vehicles. These upgraded vehicles are now operating on the front line.
A kamikaze drone flies directly toward an armored personnel carrier. But instead of penetrating the hull, it explodes on a steel screen. The crew survives. This is the new reality for Ukrainian forces, who have received enhanced protection thanks to the Metinvest project within “Steel Front of Rinat Akhmetov”.
To commemorate the third anniversary of the full-scale invasion, “Bukvy” has compiled data on the largest donors supporting the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Among them there are charitable foundations and businesses. The list includes, in particular, foundations that provide assistance exclusively from their own resources, without fundraising (such as SCM by Rinat Akhmetov, Epicenter, etc.).