Ukraine’s culture minister resigns amid ‘misunderstanding’ over budget allocation

The culture minister of Ukraine has resigned amid alleged disagreement with President Volodymyr Zelensky over budget appropriation.

Minister Oleksandr Tkachenko tendered his resignation Friday (July 21), owing to “a wave of misunderstanding about the importance of wartime culture."

"During the war, both private and budget funds for culture are no less important than for drones, because culture is the shield of our identity and our borders," he wrote in a Facebook post.

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Culture minister had allocated millions for a TV series

The alleged misunderstanding emerged between the minister and Zelensky after the former decided to allocate 448 million hryvnias (around $12 million) for the production of a television series.

Furthermore, he also wanted to earmark a $13 million package for finishing building a museum to commemorate Ukraine's 1932-33 famine, which Kyiv sees as a deliberate act of genocide by the erstwhile Soviets.

"Such things, which speak of the suffering inflicted on the Ukrainian people for decades by Moscow, should be reflected in the museum," he had told a US radio.

"If someone says that the museum should not be built during the war, let them give arguments other than that it is necessary to spend money on reconstruction. There are funds," he said unapologetically.

Zelensky objects

Tkachenko’s lavish plans ended up putting him at odds with the President himself. Zelensky on Thursday (July 20) urged his government to rein in government spending while the nation was at war with Russia.

Watch:Russia-Ukraine war: Wheat prices soar after Russia threatens ships

“In a time of war like this the maximum amount of state attention and therefore state resources should go to defense,” Zelensky said in his nightly video address, after having a conversation with Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal.

He also reportedly asked the PM to consider “changing” the culture minister.

Ukraine’s funding woes

The development comes as several US lawmakers and staffers express concerns that Ukraine’s coffers could run dry by mid-summer.

White House in May said that the administration was not planning to ask Congress for additional funding for Ukraine before the end of September, indicating that Kyiv could be left to fend for itself if the funding crunch takes a toll on the war-torn nation’s defence.

“Thanks to the bipartisan Congressional support for Ukraine, we believe we have the resources we need through the end of this fiscal year,” a White House spokesperson was quoted as saying by CNN.

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