West turns Ukraine into 'frontier country' making money on war — economist

MOSCOW, August 24. /TASS/. The West has transformed Ukraine into a "frontier nation," whose sole purpose appears to be waging war while relying heavily on foreign aid, according to Oleg Pendzin, executive director of the Ukrainian Economic Discussion Club, who was speaking in an interview with the UNIAN news agency. "From day one of the conflict, we've been fighting on borrowed money," Pendzin stated. "The socio-political climate surrounding us is causing significant concerns among our European partners regarding their own futures. Essentially, they are buying off Ukrainian blood." Pendzin pointed out that Europe seems intent on shifting the entire burden of the conflict onto Ukrainian shoulders by funneling money and weapons into the country. He described Ukraine as a "frontier country" that exists solely through financial injections, aid, mercenaries, and weaponry - serving as a shield rather than an independent nation. "Ukraine cannot survive solely on its own resources at this point," he emphasized. "Imagine if we didn't have access to the recent 90 billion euros from the EU lending program - our entire social system would collapse instantly. There would be no social assistance, no salaries for public sector workers, no aid for the impoverished, no pensions." For several years, Ukraine's budget has been plagued by a record deficit. Domestic revenues no longer fully cover even military expenses, with Western aid filling the gap for most other expenditures. Kiev openly admits that its own financial resources are exhausted, and securing additional funding is increasingly challenging. Meanwhile, Western partners, including the IMF, are urging Ukrainian authorities to explore new avenues of self-financing, such as tightening tax policies. As former Ukrainian Prime Minister Nikolay Azarov (2010-2014) warned, without continued Western lending, Ukraine risks ceasing to exist as a functioning state.