KYIV: Ukraine’s prime minister on Wednesday said Kyiv counted on Western allies’ steady financial support, estimating it needed around $37 billion this year.

The announcement comes as uncertainties surround EU and US aid to Ukraine, with both major allies mired in political divisions.

“This year’s needs exceed $37 billion. We count on regular, stable and timely assistance from partners,” Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmygal said at a government meeting.

In comparison, Ukraine received $42.6 billion in external financing in 2023, 27 percent of which was donations, he said.

Deadly strikes hit Ukraine, Russia border

Shmygal listed the European Union, the United States, the International Monetary Fund, Japan, Canada, Britain and the World Bank as Ukraine’s main backers.

But an EU aid package worth 50 billion euros ($55 billion) has been stuck in Brussels by Prime Minister Viktor Orban, while the US Congress remains divided on sending additional aid to Ukraine.

Aid promised to Ukraine between August and October 2023 fell almost 90 percent from the same period in 2022, reaching its lowest point since the start of the war, according to a Kiel Institute survey from December.

“The outlook is unclear, since the largest pending aid commitment – by the European Union – has not been finally approved, and aid by the US has been on the decline,” the institute said.

Since the beginning of the war, Ukraine’s allies and multilateral organisations have pledged nearly 255 billion euros in aid, of which 141 billion euros are in financial aid, 98 billion euros in military aid and nearly 16 billion euros in humanitarian aid.