10/30/2026

Editor’s note: English captions may not work.

Last night, the entire capital heard the sound of ballistic missiles—over ten explosions in the span of two minutes. One person was killed. Today is a day of mourning in Dnipro, Chernihiv, and Kremenchuk. In Dnipro, the Russians struck the railway station platform where trains were standing—15 people were killed. In Chernihiv, two 15-year-old girls died, and in Kremenchuk, three people were killed. Only strong Armed Forces can put an end to this. I also want to remind you what kind of army Ukraine had when it first faced the enemy in 2014. In Crimea, 96% of the personnel of the State Guard Administration defected to the enemy side; there was no one left to issue orders. More than 70% of military personnel—including the Naval command, led by the commander himself—betrayed their oath.

To organize the defense, hundreds of Maidan self-defense fighters—having completed only week-long training courses—were sent to the front in school buses, wearing tracksuits. This was the state of the army we inherited from Yanukovych: demoralized, disintegrated, infiltrated by agents, and incapable of carrying out combat missions. Oleksandr Turchynov, who served as Acting President at the time, writes about these events. I strongly recommend reading his column in *Ukrainska Pravda*—especially for those who were abroad or in Moscow back then, but now presume to lecture us on how things should have been handled.

In 2019, the authorities inherited from us combat-ready Armed Forces and tens of billions in foreign exchange reserves. Yet, after the first three years of their “effective” work, we ended up with underfunded Armed Forces and the disbandment of brigades. So, do not be fooled when they try to shift the blame onto others. Our priority was not just empty talk—it was the army, the language, and the faith. If the army is a priority for them too, then their words must be backed by funding. And funding means the budget.

This week, the Verkhovna Rada passed an unfair budget in the first reading. There is only one conclusion: they are completely out of touch. Salaries for prosecutors, judges, and law enforcement officers are being increased. Yet, the pay for military personnel has remained stagnant for five years. They claim there is no money—but there is money for those groups, just not for the army. Our team proposed cutting expenditures by 515 billion hryvnias and reallocating those funds to the Armed Forces. We fought day and night. But not a single amendment—and I emphasize, not a single one—from “European Solidarity” was accepted.

At today’s meeting with the leadership of the Armed Forces, we were told that, partly due to rising fuel costs, the army is being forced to cut back on the procurement of drones and weaponry. We will not accept this. For me—as the fifth President and leader of the opposition—a budget that does not include an increase in military pay is unacceptable. I will do everything in my power to strengthen the Armed Forces. Every week, the Foundation delivers essential supplies; the sanctions imposed by anti-Ukrainian forces in an attempt to hinder my work have not stopped us. On average, this amounts to 60–100 million hryvnias per month. We do not raise these funds through public donations; this is my family’s own money.

Today, we delivered 669 pieces of equipment and machinery—worth nearly 25 million hryvnias—to 15 units across the Ground Forces, Air Assault Forces, Special Operations Forces, Naval Forces, and Air Force. 🔹 Backhoe loaders — 4 units 🔹 “Blyskavka” (Lightning) fixed-wing FPV strike drones — 100 units 🔹 Inverter generators — 145 units 🔹 Portable power stations — 130 units 🔹 Autonomous diesel heaters — 290 units Continuing the work.

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