EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton has voiced a deep concern over the fragility of Ukraine's economy and urged the rest of the world to rally round to support it.

During the discussion at the Brussels forum on March 22, Ashton said that Ukraine's economic problems would be of top priority on the immediate agenda of the European Union.

"We have to make sure that Ukraine, economically, does not fall over ... My biggest fear right now is the state of economy and the need for us all to offer the support they need," Ashton said.

The European diplomat said she believes that Ukraine needs several billion euros to solve its budget deficit problems. The fiscal shortfall is currently one of the main problems of Ukraine's economy that had to be resolved "relatively quickly", she said.

Another problem the diplomat highlighted was the "economic viability of industry, many parts of which need to be modernized, [and this is] an issue ... that needs a slightly longer-term plan," Ashton said.

"And then there are the underlying structural problems in how to make sure that they are able to generate the resources they need to be able to pay their bills and to be able to develop that economy without running into the buffers of not having enough money day-to-day," Ashton said.