Summary for April 5, 2014
-- U.S. Vice President Joe Biden and Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk have spoken by phone in the wake of a preliminary agreement with the International Monetary Fund for an $18 billion loan guarantee. According to the White House, Biden "expressed support for finalizing the arrangement as soon as possible." The U.S. vice president also said Washington would work with Ukraine and other allies to prevent countries like Russia from using energy as a "political weapon."
-- The rating agency Moody's has lowered Ukraine's credit rating from Caa2 to Caa3, and put the country on a "negative" outlook for further downgrades. Moody's said the downgrade stemmed from the "escalation of Ukraine's political crisis," Russia’s annexation of Crimea, and Ukraine's strained external liquidity.
-- British Foreign Secretary William Hague has urged EU partners to develop possible stricter sanctions against Russia should they become necessary. Hague said it was "very important for us to remain strong and united about the sanctions that we have implemented against individuals in Russia and Crimea, and to prepare more far-reaching measures if they become necessary." Hague spoke at an informal gathering of European Union foreign ministers in Athens.
-- Ukraine has announced plans to halt trade in military equipment with Russia.
-- Ukraine's Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk says Ukraine's been holding "emergency" talks with neighboring European countries on the possibility of importing natural gas from the West.
*NOTE: Times are stated according to local time in Kyiv
