On April 30, the International Monetary Fund approved a $17.01 billion grant to support Ukraine’s economic reform program. It is equivalent to around 10% of Ukraine’s $176 billion GDP.
Slovyansk is serving as the Russian command and control center for the whole of Eastern Ukraine. It has already been marked extensively with instances of kidnapping, political murders, and intimidation.
Russia began the Ukrainian invasion by invading Donetsk, and with the Ukrainian army trying hard to regain control, the situation seems a little short of a battle to begin.
In Moscow, the MICEX index had tanked 10% in March, wiping out billions in market capitalization on Vladimir Putin’s decision to send troops into Crimea.
The Russian economy had been earlier predicted by the ministry to grow at 2.5% in the first quarter this year. However, the Russian economy minister, Alexei Ulyukayev, reported the growth to be only 0.8%.
The unrest in Ukraine is a major test for the new interim government, as it seeks to hold Ukraine together ahead of the elections scheduled for next month.
Russia has formally annexed Crimea. Crimea is an autonomous republic within Ukraine’s borders that possesses several natural gas fields, both onshore and offshore, and all connected to Ukraine’s pipeline system.
With the Ukraine crisis rattling the global financial markets, driving up prices for oil and grain, investors are rushing into perceived safe-haven assets such as gold and selling off stocks.
Three months of political turmoil have left the country dangerously short of the foreign currency reserves it needs to service its debts and pay for imports.
As part of its $15 billion assistance package to Ukraine, Russia lent $3 billion to Ukraine in December last year, for $3 billion worth of eurobonds issued by the Ukrainian government.
According to the IMF, Ukraine has been in a recession since mid-2012. Subsidizing natural gas prices for residents has put a severe strain on the country’s finances.
Ukraine, a country of 46 million, is currently in recession. It has become a battleground for the European Union and Russia in the pursuit of political and economic influence over the country.
