KIEV, Dec. 15 – Additional payments to the 2016 national budget in the amount of UAH 18.1 billion will be seen from the increase of the excise duties on tobacco and alcohol, the Cabinet of Ministers has forecast.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 15 – The US authorities are concerned over the ongoing situation in Ukraine and are looking at ways to assist the country, U.S. Department of State spokesperson Jennifer Psaki said.

BRUSSELS, Dec. 15 - Prime Minister Arseniy Yatseniuk appealed to the European Union for urgent financial aid on Monday, saying the government was doing all it could to fix a shattered economy but needed help, Reuters reported.

KIEV, Dec. 15 - Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has held a phone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande, the presidential press service reported.

KIEV, Dec. 15 – An International Monetary Fund team will conclude technical discussions with the Ukrainian authorities by the end of this week, and the mission conducting policy discussions in the context of the IMF-supported stand-by program is expected to return to Kiev early next year, IMF First Deputy Managing Director David Lipton said.

KIEV, Dec. 15 – The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry has addressed the UN member states on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the UN General Assembly resolution "Definition of Aggression," pointing to a gross violation by Russia of this resolution and other fundamental international documents.

BRUSSELS, Dec. 15 – Ukraine will continue to insist on increasing European Union sanctions against Russia due to the situation in eastern Ukraine, and the illegal annexation of Crimea, says the Ukrainian Ambassador to the EU.

WASHINGTON, Dec. 12 – The International Monetary Fund is ready to resume negotiations on the continuation of cooperation with Ukraine, IMF Communications Department Director Gerry Rice said.

BRUSSELS, Dec. 12 – The European Parliament has called for the immediate launch of a new EU mediation mission "at the highest political level" to secure a peaceful outcome to the current crisis in Ukraine.

KIEV, Dec. 14 - Tens of thousands of Ukrainians rallied in support of President Viktor Yanukovych in central Kiev on Saturday, separated by a line of riot police from anti-government protesters who have camped out for weeks in a nearby square, Reuters reported.