Russian Knights fighter jets Pavel Bednyakov/ZumaPress

Russia’s War on Ukraine’s Economy

Ukraine’s primary economic problems are not homegrown but the result of Russian aggression. The international community, with the EU in the lead, must provide substantial humanitarian assistance and help stabilize the country's economy.

WASHINGTON, DC – Ukraine’s economy may no longer be in free fall, but it remains in dire straits. The country’s GDP contracted by 6.8% last year, and is forecast to shrink by another 9% this year – a total loss of roughly 16% over two years. While things seem, to some extent, to be stabilizing – depreciation of the hryvnia has eliminated the country’s current-account deficit, and a massive fiscal adjustment brought Ukraine’s budget into cash balance in the second quarter of this year – the situation remains precarious.

Ukraine’s primary economic challenges are not homegrown; they are the result of Russian aggression. The country’s belligerent eastern neighbor has annexed Crimea, sponsored rebels in eastern Ukraine, pursued a trade war, intermittently cut off its supply of natural gas, and is threatening financial attack. So far, Ukraine has miraculously managed to withstand these assaults with little international support – but it is in desperate need of assistance.

Russia’s annexation of Crimea in March 2014 seized 4% of Ukraine’s GDP. Since then, Russian-supported armed forces have occupied territories in eastern Ukraine that accounted for 10% of the country’s GDP in 2013. With the Donbas region’s production having plummeted by 70% in the months since, this has cost Ukraine some 7% of its 2013 GDP.

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