Symbols of Ukraine's Strength Hide Tension in Kharkiv
Fortifications and flags project Ukrainian power in Kharkiv, just down the road from Russia. But more than a year after a failed attempt by pro-Russian activists to seize control of Ukraine's second-largest city, symbols of strength cannot mask the tensions that threaten to undermine Kyiv. Read the full story by RFE/RL's Glenn Kates here.
EBRD Team Visiting Kyiv; IMF Lowers 2015 Growth Forecast
By RFE/RL
Senior officials from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) are arriving in Kyiv on June 1 for five days of talks on Ukraine’s political and economic reforms.
The EBRD delegation includes members of the bank’s board of directors such as Tamsyn Barton, who represents the European Investment Bank, and Peter Bash, the EBRD’s acting director representing the European Union.
The visit comes a day after the International Monetary Fund lowered its forecast for Ukraine’s war-battered economy, predicting the economy will contract by 9 percent during 2015 -- due in large part to "the unresolved conflict in the east."
The revision followed a two-week visit by an IMF delegation to Kyiv that was completed on May 29.
Despite that move, the IMF gave a positive assessment of progress by Kyiv’s government on reform.
Ukraine is nearly bankrupt and is fighting a war in its east against Russian-backed separatists.
The government in Kyiv is hoping the IMF will disburse a second tranche of credit of about $2.5 billion under its four-year, $17.5 billion bailout program.
With additional reporting by Reuters, AFP, and Interfax
This ends our live blogging for May 31. Be sure to check back tomorrow for our continuing coverage.