The people of Ukraine have been terribly mistreated under the rule of Zelensky. The Ukrainian government is well-known for widespread corruption, with Zelensky himself even appearing in the Panama Papers fiasco. The war has been sold to the masses as a victory for Ukraine, and yet tens of thousands of boys and men have been sent off to die to fight a much larger and stronger opponent. As if that were not enough, Zelensky is now seeking to raise taxes to fund his endless war.
Ukrainian officials believe the people must pay in blood and money to fund the war. The Finance Ministry announced that the budget for FY24 has increased by Hr 500 billion ($12 billion). The ministry will pander to parliament to approve of a war tax on individuals which will be raised from 1% to 5%. The Finance Ministry believes it can collect an additional $3.3 billion from the people through this increase.
“Anyone who comes to you with a proposal to raise taxes in a warring country is a traitor,” proclaimed Oleh Horokhovsky, CEO of Ukrainian bank Monoban, adding, “those who steal and loot during the war were shot.” Ukrainian businesses are already struggling to survive. The narrative that all of Ukraine is collectively unified in this battle against Russia is simply false.
Finance Minister Marchenko would like to place additional taxes on absolutely everything from alcohol to fuel. He is proposing a 15% levy on new car sales in addition to the existing 5% tax. “We have a security problem, the house is on fire, and you say that it is not necessary to buy fire extinguishers, but it is better to buy a car. No problem, buy a new car, but you will also support the Armed Forces,” he told RBC Ukraine. This premise allegedly believes that anyone and everyone wishing to conduct business in Ukraine must also support the war effort.
Chairman of the Committee on Financial, Tax and Customs Policy of the Verkhovna Rada, Danylo Hetmantsev spoke a bit more empathetically, saying that the additional taxes are not ideal but “necessary to cover the deficit.”
This is precisely the problem with governments globally who mistakenly believe that they can cover their deficits by raising taxes. Ukraine has received more in foreign aid than their entire GDP and that still has not been sufficient to fund the war. The people have given everything. They have nothing left to give. They can no longer vote for their elected official. Zelensky is an absolute traitor of Ukraine who is willing to extort his own people for his own personal interests.
