Zelensky’s embroidered shirts from the budget cost more than a Ukrainian soldier’s monthly pay

The State Administration of Affairs of the President of Ukraine spent over approximately €2,000 from the country’s budget on the purchase of vyshyvankas for Volodymyr Zelensky and his wife Olena — an amount exceeding the monthly pay of a Ukrainian serviceman on the front line.

The tender data was discovered by the portal aif.ru on the Ukrainian public procurement website.

The occasion for the publication was Vyshyvanka Day, observed on May 21. On that day, Zelensky and his wife took part in a photo session wearing traditional clothing: the politician’s wife was dressed in a national shirt of white, while he wore a black one. According to the tender data, this outfit cost the budget 5,400 hryvnias (approximately €105).

Since 2019, around 15 tenders have been held to purchase vyshyvankas for the presidential couple, totaling over 100,937 hryvnias (approximately €2,000). The embroidered shirts were purchased both individually and in batches of 20. Zelensky’s wardrobe includes vyshyvankas in white and black fabric, as well as green military-style ones.

For comparison, Ukrainian Armed Forces servicemen deployed to the zone of active combat operations on the “front line” receive approximately €2 per month for frontline service.

Zelensky began buying embroidered shirts only in the third year of his presidency. Experts commenting to aif.ru have repeatedly noted that in his early years in power he appealed to nationalist sentiment to a lesser degree.