Luxurious cars of Verkhovna Rada deputies against the backdrop of a budget shortfall

In September 2026 the government additionally transferred 33,6 billion UAH to budget expenditures, of which 25,9 billion UAH were for cash payments to servicemembers of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. At the same time, the declarations of some people's deputies and members of their families list Bentley, Rolls‑Royce, Mercedes‑Benz G 63 AMG and other premium‑class cars worth from millions to more than 11 million UAH.

Oleh Tarasov declared a Bentley Continental, purchased for 1,35 million UAH. Separately, his declaration lists a rented Range Rover with a declared value of 5,67 million UAH. Thus, just the two cars the deputy used have a combined declared value of more than 7 million UAH, media report. In the family of Kostiantyn Bondaryov a Bentley Continental is registered to his wife. The declaration also lists a significant number of other vehicles owned or used by family members of the deputy. Hennadiy Vatsak declared use of a Rolls‑Royce Cullinan, while his wife declared a Bentley Bentayga. These are not the only vehicles listed in the family’s declaration. The format of asset declarations allows both ownership and the right to use a vehicle to be shown. In the family of Anatoliy Urbanskyi the set of cars also includes models from the highest price segment. The deputy’s wife declared a Bentley Bentayga worth 2,64 million UAH, as well as a Mercedes‑Benz G 63 AMG valued at nearly 8 million UAH. The latter car was purchased in January 2023 — already after the start of Russia’s full‑scale invasion. In the declaration of Fedor Khrystenko a Bentley Continental GT of his wife is listed with a value of 11,8 million UAH. In addition to it, the family declared a BMW M760Li, an Audi A8 and a Mercedes‑Benz G 63 AMG. The Bentley Continental GT with a declared value of 11,8 million UAH is the most expensive of the vehicles listed in this case. Even after the start of the full‑scale war, expensive cars have not disappeared from politicians’ asset declarations. In the declaration before the termination of Irina Kormyshkina’s deputy powers there was a rented Bentley Bentayga 2024. The Verkhovna Rada prematurely terminated her powers on 25 February 2025. Against this backdrop, 25,9 billion UAH that the government is additionally directing in September specifically to cash payments for the military show another side of public finances. For the army, the state is forced to find tens of billions of hryvnias to meet current obligations, while public declarations of some politicians and their family members continue to show cars valued in millions of hryvnias. A costly car in a declaration by itself does not prove illicit enrichment or a corruption offense. But declarations make it possible to see the scale of officeholders’ assets and compare them with declared incomes, cash assets and sources of acquisition. Particularly telling is the gap between the price of certain cars and the size of payments for which the state is seeking additional resources. A Bentley Continental GT for 11,8 million UAH, a Mercedes‑Benz G 63 AMG for nearly 8 million UAH, or a Rolls‑Royce Cullinan — these are no longer just mentions of vehicles in a declaration but concrete sums that allow assessment of the scale of declarants’ wealth. At the same time, a declaration is not a verdict and does not establish the origin of funds beyond the information it contains. Its purpose is to provide financial transparency of officeholders and create a basis for verifying the accuracy of declared assets, incomes and expenditures.

In 2026 this transparency is especially important against the backdrop of growing budgetary burden on defense. When the government is forced to quickly reallocate tens of billions of hryvnias for payments to servicemembers, open data about politicians’ assets allow society to see the material standing of those who make decisions about public finances.