BRUSSELS, March 23 – The European Union has emphasized that it will render concrete and overall assistance to Ukraine "in return for implementing internal reforms."

KIEV, March 24 – Ukraine will have to cut its 2010 budget deficit to 6% of GDP among other conditions to win resumption of lending from the International Monetary Fund, a senior Ukrainian official said Wednesday.

KIEV, March 24 – Prime Minister Mykola Azarov said he will seek to reach a “compromise” in talks with Russia on Thursday for a deal that would allow lowering natural gas prices for Ukraine.

KIEV, March 24 – A Communist Party member on Wednesday was appointed head of the Customs Service, a post supervising billions of hryvnaias in state revenue, averting a collapse of the governing coalition.

KIEV, March 24 – The Ukrainian government has spent UAH1 billion since October to prop up its ailing metals and chemicals companies, the Industry Ministry announced.

These figures were received after an analysis of the impact of anti-crisis measures of the government on the results of metals and chemical companies' work.

KIEV, March 24 – The National Bank of Ukraine could stabilize the exchange rate if it restricted banks' ability to speculate on the currency, introduced a ban on the formation of currency reserves in dollars, introduced the 100% sale of export earnings, and cut the terms for payments on export and import contracts from 180 to 90 days, according to the deputy NBU governor, Oleksandr Savchenko.

KIEV, March 24 – Russia on Tuesday postponed indefinitely talks with Ukraine on a number of economic and trade issues in apparent reaction to the country’s plans for closer cooperation with the European Union in the energy sector.

KIEV, March 24 – The Finance Ministry is considering an issue of state bonds to raise funds from individuals to finance preparations for the European Football Championship in 2012, said Oleksandr Shlapak, first deputy head of the presidential secretariat.

KIEV, March 24 – Ukraine’s top national security body said Monday it will launch a probe into a recent collision of Ukrainian and Chinese ships near Hong Kong that is feared to have left 18 Ukrainian sailors dead.

KIEV, March 23 - Ukraine will have to focus on making its industry more energy efficient to cope with growing natural gas prices, First Deputy Prime Minister Anatoliy Kinakh said Wednesday.