Cuts to U.S. foreign assistance that helped sustain government services — including civil servant salaries and social protections — has exposed Ukraine to longer-term liquidity risks and structural financial challenges. Without an equivalent replacement mechanism, vulnerable people, including long-term internally displaced persons, may lack access to critical services and face acute needs that the humanitarian response may not also be able to meet.

Date: 12/25

Region: Europe & Central Asia

Country: Ukraine

Topic: Refugees & Displacement, Governance & Rights

Policy Lens: Security & Resilience

Entry Type: System Impact

Additional Context: While alternative mechanisms, such as EU loans and reform-based schemes, may help fill part of the financing gap left by the U.S. withdrawal, these may be less flexible, predictable, and timely. Ukraine’s ability to meet the conditions attached to these loans remains uncertain, raising concerns about the continued and timely disbursement of critical funds needed to address both immediate and long-term challenges.

The analysis draws on a survey ACAPS conducted to assess the impacts of the U.S. foreign aid suspension, specifically on the humanitarian response in Ukraine. Sixty-nine representatives of international, national, and local humanitarian organizations responded to the survey, the insights from which were also supplemented with a secondary data review of publicly available information and key informant interviews with 27 humanitarian and development organizations.

Source: ACAPS