IMF breaks off negotiations with Greece over debt deal. Bundesbank president warns over rising insolvency risk

The International Monetary Fund has dramatically raised the stakes in Greece's stalled debt talks, announcing that its delegation had broken off negotiations in Brussels and flown home because of major differences with Athens.

EU Refutes Reports on Preparing For Greek Default, Eurozone Exit

The  is not preparing for a default by Greece or its potential exit from the eurozone, a spokesman of the European Commission told reporters on Tuesday.

Greece offers olive branch as search for allies begins

Greece sought to repair relations with its international creditors on Saturday (Jan 31) as the new anti-austerity government began a charm offensive in European capitals, even as Germany insisted it would not support any debt relief...

Greece warned against trying to reverse bailout deals

The head of the Eurogroup warned on Friday that Greece could not ignore its international obligations, after a first meeting with the new anti-austerity government that wants to renegotiate its multi-billion-euro bailout...

Greek PM Tsipras pledges radical change, markets tumble

Leftwing Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras threw down an open challenge to international creditors today by halting privatisation plans agreed under the country's bailout deal, prompting a third day of heavy losses on financial markets...

Already fragile ceasefire under strain in east Ukraine

Fighting flared near an airport in eastern Ukraine in breach of a fragile eight-day ceasefire as the prime minister accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of planning to destroy his country.
Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk said only membership of NATO would enable Ukraine to defend itself from external aggression.

IMF chief charged with ‘negligence’ over graft case

Case relates to handling of $527-million state payout to disgraced tycoon.... 

IMF chief Christine Lagarde, one of the world's most powerful women, announced Wednesday she had been charged with "negligence" over a multi-million-euro graft case relating to her time as French finance minister.

The shock announcement came a day after she was grilled for more than 15 hours by a special court in Paris that probes ministerial misconduct, the fourth time she has been questioned in a case that has long weighed upon her position as managing director of the International Monetary Fund.

US Congress Votes to Aid Ukraine, Penalize Russia. - The same day that the IMF pledged to provide Ukraine with up to $18 billion in loans

The U.S. Congress has sent a strong message to Russia for its annexation of Crimea by passing measures that give aid to Ukraine and penalize Moscow.

Lawmakers in the House and the Senate overwhelmingly approved separate measures on Thursday.

Both bills include $1 billion in loan guarantees to Ukraine and penalize Russia for its actions in Crimea.

Lawmakers in both chambers will have to resolve differences on other provisions before sending a final bill to President Barack Obama.

EU is aware that Ukrainian economy is in really terrible shape. - analyst

The European Commission has proposed another 1 billion euro for Kiev, which will come as a part of the 11 billion euro package agreed earlier in March. A rapidly worsening balance-of-payments and weak fiscal situation in the wake of the latest developments in Ukraine pushed the EU to consider a new perk. The Voice of Russia talked to Lilit Gevorgyan is a Russia/CIS country analyst with IHS Global Insight and Jane's Information Group.

How can this financial aid change the situation in Ukraine? In your opinion, will it somehow help to stabilize the country’s economy?

Ukraine and the Council of Europe have agreed joint actions to block Russia's aggression in Crimea, Ukraine's acting President Oleksandr Turchynov says.

Ukraine's acting President and Parliament Speaker Oleksandr Turchynov has met with the Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjorn Jagland and Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz to discuss and exchange views on the latest developments in Ukraine.
Joint actions with the Council of Europe have been agreed and an active dialogue about cooperation with the IMF is taking place, a statement from Turchynov said.

Kiev has no money to pay off debts, financial crisis to follow - Ukraine's ex-minister

Ukraine’s new government is saying that it would try to do its best to stabilize the situation in the country. We have got in touch with Victor Suslov, once Ukraine’s Minister of Economy and now Ukraine’s representative in the Eurasian Economic Commission.
Ukraine’s new Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk says that now, Ukrainians would have to toughly economize for some time. Meanwhile, the head of Ukraine’s National Bank Stepan Kubiv has said that Ukraine has enough money to pay back its foreign debts.

A redundant political class in Ireland

by Vincent Cooper*
Politics is dead in the Irish Republic. The Irish parliament, the Dail, is now little more than a rubber stamp for the Troika, the generic name for the European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund, and the European Union, the three powers to which the country is in hock.
Things are bad. Ireland’s debt to GDP ratio is set to reach 122 percent in 2013, above the 120 percent threshold the IMF considers unsustainable. The total debt of the country, according to an Irish Times report, is €192 billion, four times what it was in 2007, with a projected need to borrow a further €34 billion before 2015.

Mere cash injection may not be enough

By Dimitris Kontogiannis
The Greek government has invested a lot in the long-awaited bailout tranches to cope with the developing credit crunch and bring the economy to the stabilization phase late next year. However, a closer look at the figures indicates the positive impact may be less than hoped for, and therefore the risk of disappointment on the back of fostering high expectations should not be ignored or underestimated.