Ukraine is "one of the most corrupt countries on earth", Britain should review aid – Farage
Nigel Farage, leader of Britain’s right-wing populist Reform UK party, said his government would "look closely" at British aid to "corrupt" Ukraine. He said he was "very concerned" about where British money might have ended up.
Politico reported this, according to Censor.NET.
Farage on corruption
Speaking at a press conference on Monday, Farage called Ukraine "one of the most corrupt countries on earth." At the same time, he emphasized that he had never said Ukraine should not be supported.
"I have never said we should not support Ukraine — never. But I have said that I would like to scrutinize whether British taxpayers’ money is being stolen through corruption," the Reform UK leader said.
According to UK government figures released in July 2026, Britain has allocated £25 billion to Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion.
This amount includes:
- £16 billion in military support;
- up to £5.6 billion in non-military assistance;
- £3.5 billion in export finance cover.
"No support is unlimited"
Asked about the limits of support for Ukraine, Farage said: "Support is never unlimited, is it? Is [UK Prime Minister] Andy Burnham’s support for Ukraine unlimited? No, it is not. But must we continue to support Ukraine?"
He again called Ukraine "one of the most corrupt countries," adding that he was "very, very concerned" about where some British funds had gone.
"And, my God, Zelenskyy’s administration has been rocked by corruption allegations, which may ultimately make holding general elections there an important matter. But I have no doubt that Putin now poses a greater threat than ever before," Farage said.
On elections
Farage, a longtime Trump ally who previously spoke at his campaign rallies, said he disagreed with the US decision to buy Russian diesel but criticized EU countries for "buying huge quantities of Russian energy" during the war.
He did not support Trump’s call for a change of leadership. According to him, Trump and Zelenskyy have a "somewhat turbulent relationship," so the call was unsurprising. He added that "at some point, Ukraine needs elections" if it wants to be a country with Western values.
He recalled that Britain held elections even during World War II.
Who is Nigel Farage?
- Nigel Farage has been described as a pro-Russian Eurosceptic. Together with his former UK Independence Party (UKIP), Farage was a leading initiator of Brexit — Britain’s withdrawal from the EU. He left UKIP in 2018 and, after seven unsuccessful attempts, won a seat in the British parliament in 2024 with Reform UK.
- Farage is known for his controversial statements about Russia’s war against Ukraine. In particular, he said that the Russian-Ukrainian war was, of course, the Russian dictator’s fault, but claimed that EU and NATO expansion had given him a pretext to invade Ukraine.
- He later tried to distance himself from accusations of being pro-Russian and explained that he had never been an "apologist or supporter" of Putin, but said that "if you poke the Russian bear with a stick, do not be surprised if it responds."
- In recent years, Farage has supported Ukraine’s NATO accession and expressed hope that US President Donald Trump would force Putin to compromise.
