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that Ukrainian tycoon Kostyantyn Zhevago said his record of investing in his homeland was proof of innocence ahead of Thursday's extradition hearing in a French Alpine town over accusations of embezzling tens of millions of dollars.
Zhevago's case comes as Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy seeks to clip the wings of oligarchs dominating the economy since the fall of the Soviet Union three decades ago.
The 49-year-old billionaire, who controls London-listed iron pellet producer Ferrexpo, was arrested at a ski resort in December at the request of Ukraine which wants him over the disappearance of $113 million from the now bankrupt lender Finance & Credit Bank.
Zhevago, a former lawmaker and former beneficiary owner of Finance & Credit Bank, was released on bail for 1 million euros and due to appear at an appeals court in the nearby town of Chambery.
Turkey will continue discussions to extend a deal that allows grain shipments from Ukraine's Black Sea ports for 120 days rather than 60 days, Turkish Defense Minister Hulusi Akar said,
"We started negotiations in line with the initial version of the deal. The continuation of the deal is important. We will continue our contacts (regarding its extension for) 120 days instead of two months," Akar said according to a statement by the defense ministry.
Parties of the deal will evaluate and decide on a further extension of the agreement, Akar also said, adding that Ankara hoped for a positive outcome.
The deal reached in July last year created a protected sea transit corridor and was designed to alleviate global food shortages by allowing exports to resume from three ports in Ukraine, a major producer of grains and oilseeds.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has suggested that his country may soon ratify Finland’s application to join NATO,
That would allow for the possibility of Finland joining the Western military alliance separately from Sweden. Finland and Sweden abandoned decades of nonalignment and applied to join NATO last year. All 30 existing allies need to ratify their accession.
Turkey’s government accuses Sweden of being too soft on groups it deems to be terror organizations. Finnish President Sauli Niinisto is scheduled to meet with Erdogan in Istanbul on Friday. Asked by reporters on Wednesday if the Turkish parliament might ratify Finland’s membership after that, Erdogan responded: “God willing, if it is for the best.”
After the Bomb, Silence: Under Fire in Bohoyavlenka, Eastern Ukraine: "When there's an explosion, there's a terrifying boom, and then a deathly silence," says Lyuba, whose house is the only intact structure on her street in Bohoyavlenka, eastern Ukraine. Current Time correspondent Borys Sachalko sent this report from the village, 10 kilometers from the frontline town of Vuhledar.
The U.K. Supreme Court has ruled that Ukraine can try to avoid repaying $3 billion in loans it said it took under pressure from Russia in 2013 to prevent it from trying to join the European Union,
The court on Wednesday rejected a bid by a British company acting on Russia’s behalf to order Ukraine to repay the loans without facing a trial. Ukraine said it borrowed the money while facing the threat of military force and massive illegal economic and political pressure nearly a decade before Russia invaded its neighbor.
The loans were issued before Russia illegally annexed Ukraine's Crimea peninsula in 2014, and the case was heard before Russia invaded Ukraine last year.
Canada will send about 8,000 rounds of artillery ammunition and a dozen air defense missiles as part of Ottawa's latest military aide to Kyiv, the Canadian defense ministry said in a statement,
Canada will also provide Ukraine with more than 1,800 rounds of training ammunition for Leopard 1 battle tanks donated by Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal government, one of Ukraine's most vocal international supporters, has committed over $730 million in military aid to Kyiv since the start of the Russian invasion last year.
Canada has already announced it is donating eight Leopard 2 main battle tanks, which are expected to be in Ukraine in the coming weeks, the ministry said.
Inside Kyiv's Sacred Cave Monastery as 'Eviction' Deadline Looms -- Ukraine has ordered Moscow-affiliated clerics to leave Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, the country’s most important Orthodox monastery, by the end of March. Here is the background of the site, and developments that have led to the current crisis. has the report.