On 28 May, the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine adopted a package of decisions linking defence financing, international support, tax incentives for military technologies, parliamentary oversight of resources and a new model of social assistance.
The plenary day of 28 May should not be viewed as a set of separate votes, but as a single parliamentary snapshot of Ukraine’s wartime policy. At the centre of these decisions are the army, the state budget, international partners, oversight of defence spending, technological renewal of the armed forces and the social resilience of citizens.
For a country that continues to live under the conditions of Russia’s full-scale war, such decisions matter not only for central government. They affect servicemen and servicewomen, local budgets, communities, critical infrastructure, low-income families and the confidence of international partners in Ukrainian institutions.
Key decisions of the parliamentary day
No. 15083: the Resolution on the report of the Temporary Investigative Commission concerning the use of defence resources was adopted.
No. 15224: the draft law on financial support for the security and defence sector was adopted in the first reading.
No. 15259: the Law exempting supplies of ground robotic systems for the Defence Forces from VAT was adopted.
No. 0376: agreements with the European Union on macro-financial assistance of up to EUR 90 billion were ratified.
No. 0374: the Grant Agreement with France for EUR 71 million to support critical infrastructure and priority sectors of the economy was ratified.
No. 0357: the Agreement on long-term cooperation and support between Ukraine and Albania was ratified.
No. 15094: the draft law on basic social assistance was adopted in the first reading.
Defence resources must remain under parliamentary oversight
One of the most sensitive decisions was the adoption of the Resolution on the report of the Temporary Investigative Commission of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine investigating possible violations of Ukrainian legislation during measures related to national defence.
During the reporting period, the Commission examined the use of budget funds for military engineering, technical and fortification structures; the procurement, supply and distribution of UAVs for the security and defence sector; and possible unlawful actions by officials of Territorial Recruitment and Social Support Centres in different regions of Ukraine.
In peacetime, parliamentary oversight is often perceived as an institutional procedure. In wartime, it becomes part of national defence capacity. If the state increases defence spending, it must also increase transparency, accountability and responsibility for every decision, every contract and every hryvnia.
The parliamentary meaning of this decision: the defence budget must not only be larger — it must also be more accountable. Public responsibility for the use of resources is one of the foundations of trust in the state during war.
Defence financing is entering a new phase
The Verkhovna Rada adopted in the first reading Government draft law No. 15224 on amendments to the State Budget of Ukraine for 2026 regarding financial support for the security and defence sector. The Budget Committee was instructed to prepare the document for the second reading under an expedited procedure.
The logic of the draft law is to provide financial resources for urgent measures in the field of security and defence through external financial assistance from the European Union. This resource is intended to support Ukraine’s response to the Russian Federation’s full-scale armed aggression.
Particular attention should be paid to the fact that the draft law provides not only for increased spending on the national security and defence sector, but also for strengthening the state budget reserve fund and financing comprehensive resilience plans for regions and individual cities.
This is an important signal for local self-government. The war has long gone beyond the front line and has become a test for energy systems, transport, shelters, hospitals, water supply, municipal services and the ability of communities to respond quickly to crises. That is why defence budget policy is increasingly linked to the policy of regional resilience.
Ground robotic systems: a tax provision with defence substance
Another decision was Law No. 15259 on exemption from value-added tax for the supply of ground robotic systems for the needs of the Defence Forces.
At first glance, this is a technical tax amendment. In reality, its meaning is much broader. Ground robotic systems are about the evacuation of wounded soldiers, logistics, ammunition delivery, demining, reconnaissance, operations in dangerous zones and reducing risks for military personnel.
Exempting such supplies from VAT may make the provision of combat units faster and cheaper, while also increasing the efficiency of public spending. For the defence industry, it is also a signal that parliamentary support for technology must move from declarations to specific financial and tax decisions.
War changes the meaning of budget policy. Modern defence is not only personnel and conventional weapons. It is also drones, robotic systems, digital solutions, logistics and the state’s ability to remove unnecessary financial barriers where the lives of soldiers are at stake.
The European loan: a resource for the budget and defence
The largest financial decision of the day was the ratification of the Loan Agreement for Ukraine and the Memorandum of Understanding with the European Union. Law No. 0376 creates the legal framework for attracting funds totalling up to EUR 90 billion in 2026–2027.
These funds have two key functions: to support the state budget and to strengthen defence capacity. The Agreement defines the technical, financial and procedural aspects of attracting funds, their allocation between budgetary and defence components, and the mechanism for repayment of the loan through reparations from the Russian Federation.
This decision has not only financial but also political significance. It reinforces a principle that is becoming increasingly important for European policy towards Ukraine: support for a state defending itself must be long-term, predictable and linked to the aggressor’s responsibility for the damage caused.
At the same time, this assistance is not simply an external resource to cover the deficit. It is accompanied by requirements concerning public finance policy, domestic revenue mobilisation, spending efficiency and the quality of governance. That is why it is important for Ukraine not only to receive the funds, but also to demonstrate that it can manage them transparently and effectively.
European financial support is not an external cashbox for the wartime budget. It is a contract of trust in which Ukraine receives resources while also undertaking to demonstrate transparency, discipline and administrative capacity.
The French grant for critical infrastructure
The Verkhovna Rada also ratified the Grant Agreement between the Government of Ukraine and the Government of the French Republic on supporting critical infrastructure and priority sectors of Ukraine’s economy. The agreement concerns EUR 71 million in grant funding.
The funding is to be directed towards recovery in healthcare, infrastructure, energy, agriculture, water supply, wastewater management and irrigation, waste processing, mine action, housing construction and digital technologies.
For communities, this decision has practical significance. Damaged energy systems, unstable water supply, the need to restore hospitals, housing and infrastructure are the daily reality of many regions. The French grant instrument can become part of faster recovery, but its effectiveness will depend on the quality of prepared projects and the ability of public authorities to manage them openly.
Albania: long-term support as a political signal
In a separate decision, Parliament ratified the Agreement on Long-Term Cooperation and Support between Ukraine and the Republic of Albania. The document was signed in Davos on 21 January 2025 and provides for a ten-year cooperation framework.
It concerns support in the military, intelligence, financial, humanitarian and political spheres. The Albanian track does not have the same financial scale as the agreements with the European Union or France. But its importance lies elsewhere: Ukraine is expanding the circle of states that undertake long-term commitments to support it in resisting Russian aggression.
For Ukraine, it is not only the amount of assistance that matters, but also the political geography of support. The wider the circle of partners, the stronger the state’s international position becomes in matters of security, recovery and its future place in the European political community.
Social assistance as an element of state resilience
Alongside defence and international decisions, the Verkhovna Rada adopted in the first reading draft law No. 15094 on basic social assistance. The document proposes introducing a new type of state social support for low-income families.
The idea of the draft law is not limited to financial payments. It provides for an individual assessment of household needs, the preparation of individual social service plans, targeted comprehensive support for families and incentives for able-bodied recipients to return to the labour market.
This brings social policy closer to the European logic: the state should not merely compensate poverty, but help a person or family move out of vulnerability. For a country facing war, internal displacement, destroyed housing, job losses and demographic pressure, such a model may become part of a broader policy of social resilience.
What these decisions mean for the regions
The decisions adopted by the Verkhovna Rada on 28 May should be read not only through a national lens. For the regions, they have direct practical significance. Defence financing affects servicemen and servicewomen and their families. Comprehensive resilience plans for cities affect the ability of communities to withstand attacks, energy disruptions and infrastructure crises. International grants affect the possibility of restoring hospitals, water supply, housing and critical facilities. Social assistance affects support for those most vulnerable in the wartime economy.
For industrial and security-burdened regions, including the Kryvyi Rih region, such decisions carry particular weight. Defence, social and infrastructure policies do not exist separately here. They converge in the daily work of communities, enterprises, hospitals, municipal services and families living under constant security risk.
Regional comment
Ruslan Shamrin, deputy of the Kryvyi Rih City Council and member of the Standing Commission of the Kryvyi Rih City Council on City Development Strategy and Investment, notes that wartime parliamentary decisions should be assessed not only by their national effect, but also by how they reach a specific community.
“For the regions, it is important that defence financing, international assistance, recovery programmes and social support do not remain only at the level of central documents. People must see results in security, the functioning of critical infrastructure, support for families, community readiness for crises and the ability of local authorities to implement projects quickly. That is why parliamentary oversight and transparency in the use of funds are just as important as the amount of financing itself,” Ruslan Shamrin emphasises.
The parliamentary logic of the day
Taken together, the decisions of 28 May show that the Ukrainian Parliament is operating in several dimensions at once. The first is defence: increasing resources, supporting technologies and overseeing the use of funds. The second is international: attracting European financing, grants and long-term partner commitments. The third is social: an attempt to modernise support for vulnerable citizens.
This multi-level logic is a sign of a state that is not merely reacting to war, but trying to build institutional resilience. War requires quick decisions. Democracy requires those decisions to be accountable, explained and understandable to society.
The decisions of the Verkhovna Rada on 28 May are not merely parliamentary news. They are a test of the state’s ability to finance defence, work with partners, oversee resources, support communities and preserve social responsibility towards citizens at the same time.
In this logic, the most important issue is not the vote itself, but implementation. Ukraine needs not only adopted laws, but also high-quality execution: transparent procedures, well-prepared projects, honest reporting and responsible work by the Government, parliamentary committees, local authorities and law enforcement bodies.
In wartime, parliamentary decisions should be assessed by a simple standard: whether they strengthen the army, reinforce public finances, help communities, protect people and make Ukraine stronger in its relations with partners. The package of decisions adopted on 28 May provides an important legal framework for this. The key question now is the quality of its practical implementation.
