Ukraine and Russia Are Both Struggling to Finance Their War

Trump administration envoy Steve Witkoff has drafted the outline of a new peace deal between Russia and Ukraine—even as U.S. sanctions on two Russian oil companies went into effect recently. Congress is considering a new package of sanctions that could pass later this year. Ukraine, for its part, is facing a dire budget shortfall for next year. And a growing corruption scandal threatens to engulf the Ukrainian government. Are U.S. sanctions on Russia working? How severe is Ukraine’s budget shortfall? And is corruption inevitable in Ukraine under conditions of total war? Those are a few of the questions that came…