Russia-Ukraine war live: IMF approves four-year $15.6bn loan programme for Ukraine

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Opening summary

Welcome backmost to our continuing sum of the warfare successful Ukraine. We’ll beryllium bringing you the latest developments arsenic they happen.

Our apical communicative this morning:

The International Monetary Fund’s enforcement committee approved a four-year $15.6bn indebtedness programme for Ukraine, portion of a planetary $115bn bundle to enactment the country’s economy.

The determination clears the mode for an contiguous disbursement of astir $2.7bn to Kyiv, and requires Ukraine to transportation retired ambitious reforms, particularly successful the vigor sector.

“It is an important assistance successful our combat against Russian aggression,” the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, tweeted.

We’ll person much connected this communicative shortly. In the meantime present are the cardinal caller developments:

• Joe Biden has called connected Russia to merchandise Evan Gershkovich, a Wall Street Journal newsman arrested this week connected espionage charges and facing 20 years successful jail. “Let him go,” the US president said, erstwhile asked astir the case. The White House property secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, has described the espionage charges arsenic “ridiculous”. Russian officials continued to talk astir Gershkovich successful presumption suggesting his condemnation was a foregone conclusion.

• Russia’s overseas minister, Sergei Lavrov, volition seat a UN information assembly gathering erstwhile Russia assumes the assembly presidency connected Saturday. “As of 1 April, they’re taking the level of absurdity to a caller level,” said Sergiy Kyslytsya, Kyiv’s imperishable representative. Ukraine’s overseas minister, Dmytro Kuleba, said it was a “stark reminder that thing is incorrect with the mode planetary information architecture is functioning”.

• Ukraine volition ne'er forgive the Russian troops liable for alleged atrocities successful Bucha, Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said, arsenic the municipality adjacent Kyiv marked the day of its recapture aft 33 days of concern successful 2022. The leaders of Croatia, Slovakia and Slovenia travelled to Ukraine connected Friday to instrumentality portion successful commemorative events, the Croatian authorities said.

• Spain’s premier minister, Pedro Sánchez, has encouraged the Chinese president, Xi Jinping, to talk to Volodymyr Zelenskiy and larn first-hand Ukraine’s bid look to assistance extremity Russia’s invasion. Sanchez, speaking during his sojourn to China, said helium had informed Xi that Spain supported the Ukrainian president’s proposals, including a request to reconstruct Ukraine’s territory to earlier Russia’s annexation of Crimea successful 2014. Xi called for an extremity to a “cold warfare mentality” and to the unit of “extreme” sanctions against Russia.

• Finland volition formally beryllium welcomed into Nato “within days” aft Turkey’s ratification of its accession to the occidental defence alliance, the Nato caput wide has announced. The Turkish parliament was the past among the 30 members of the alliance to ratify Finland’s membership, aft Hungary’s legislature approved a akin measure this week. Sweden’s Nato bid faces objections from Turkey which accuses it of harbouring members of violent groups.

• Alexander Lukashenko, the Belarusian president, said helium had intensified talks with Russia astir deploying atomic weapons successful Belarus, alleging determination were plans for neighbouring Poland to invade. Belarus had deployed a peculiar forces contingent to its confederate borderline with Ukraine “to forestall provocations”, helium added.

• Russian and Belarusian players volition beryllium allowed to vie astatine Wimbledon and the British grass-court tournaments this year aft the All England Club and the LTA jointly opted to reverse their bans connected players for this season’s events. Russian and Belarusian players volition beryllium required to motion neutrality agreements, which prohibit them from expressing enactment for Russia’s penetration of Ukraine, receiving backing from the Russian oregon Belarusian state, oregon being sponsored by organisations funded by their governments.

• Vladimir Putin has signed a decree to telephone up 147,000 Russian citizens for statutory subject work arsenic portion of the outpouring conscription campaign, Russian authorities media reported. The Russian person past signed a regular conscription run successful September, calling up 120,000 citizens for statutory service, the Tass quality bureau said. The wide unit of the equipped forces of the Russian Federation stated that it was not a 2nd question of mobilisation.

• The UN quality rights chief, Volker Türk, has said “severe violations” of quality rights and planetary humanitarian instrumentality person go “shockingly routine” successful Russia’s penetration of Ukraine. The fig of civilian casualties successful Ukraine was far higher than authoritative figures showed, Türk said successful an code to the UN’s quality rights assembly successful Geneva, wherever helium said Ukraine was a federation “struggling to survive” successful the look of Russia’s invasion.

• Russia’s ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, has rejected charges brought against Vladimir Putin by the planetary transgression tribunal (ICC) for overseeing the abduction of Ukrainian children. The ICC issued an arrest warrant successful March for Russia’s president and his children’s rights commissioner, Maria Lvova-Belova, for the “unlawful deportation” of Ukrainian children and their transportation from areas of Ukraine occupied by Russian forces.