KIEV, May 22 ??“ Pro-Russian Prime Minister Viktor Yanukovych on Tuesday apparently played down his earlier agreement for holding early election as a way out of severe political crisis in Ukraine.

KIEV, May 22 ??“ A local Kiev court on Tuesday rejected President Viktor Yushchenko??™s appeal that had been seeking to prevent the Constitutional Court from issuing a ruling on political crisis.

KIEV, May 22 ??“ Vasyl Kyseliov, a senior member of the pro-government??™s Regions Party, demanded that Parliamentary Speaker Oleksandr Moroz publish in the Holos Ukrainy newspaper the passed law amending the 2007 state budget, according to which wage and pensions are to be increased from June 1.

KIEV, May 22 ??“ The total volume of foreign direct investments from the European Union countries to Ukraine was $11 billion in 1991-2005, an official at the European Commission told Interfax-Ukraine.

KIEV, May 22 ??“ The National Bank of Ukraine will seek to keep consumer inflation under control thus preventing the hryvnia, the national currency, from losing value against the U.S. dollar, NBU Governor Volodymyr Stelmakh said.

MOSCOW, May 22 ??“ Russia will impose an 18.2% hike on price of natural gas supplied to Ukraine starting July 1, a newspaper reported Monday citing a senior official at Gazprom, the Russian gas monopoly.

KIEV, May 22 ??“ Ukrainian President Viktor Yushchenko on Monday hosted a meeting with leaders of Poland, Bulgaria, Georgia and Azerbaijan seeking to forge an alliance that would reduce dependence on Russian energy.

KIEV, May 19 ??“ The German energy company E.ON-Ruhrgas refutes reports that Ukrainians are siphoning gas from pipelines to Western Europe.

KIEV, May 19 ??“ UkrPoshta, the state-owned postal services company, is seeking to challenge Western Union by entering the lucrative money-transfer business and charging competitive rates, an official said Thursday.

KIEV, May 19 ??“ President Viktor Yushchenko Thursday sought changes to the government??™s plan aimed at ending monopoly of Russian oil companies in Ukraine by ordering a merger of domestic oil producing and refining assets.