Ukraine to be topic of EU talks in Riga today:
The Ukraine conflict is high on the agenda of two days of informal talks between European Union foreign ministers who are gathering in Latvia’s capital, Riga, on March 6.
According to officials in Latvia, which currently chairs the EU Council, the talks will focus on the conflict in Ukraine -- including tensions between the EU and Russia over Moscow's deployments of troops and weaponry there, and the implementation of the Minsk cease-fire agreements for eastern Ukraine.
On the eve of the gathering, European foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said the ministers would consider additional sanctions against Russia over its support for separatists in eastern Ukraine.
Maja Kocijancic, spokeswoman for EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini, said ministers from the 28 EU member countries also would discuss the possible use of international peacekeepers in Ukraine.
Also on the agenda are preparations for the EU’s Eastern Partnership summit in May.
Barring any major development, that ends the live blog today.
Latest on Ukraine's economy:
The Ukrainian government said on March 5 the country's economy "will shrink this year and consumer prices will jump" due to the effects of the conflict in eastern Ukraine.
A statement posted on the government's website said GDP could fall by as much as 11.9 percent this year in a "worst-case scenario" and that year-end inflation could accelerate to 42.8 percent.
The figures are significantly worse than the 2015 economic forecast the Ukrainian gave in September when it forecast GDP growth of 0.3 percent and year-end inflation not exceeding 9.8 percent.
Alexander Valchysen, the head of research at the Kyiv-based Investment Company of Ukraine, said "realism is winning within the walls of the government" and the government's new figures were "a good signal that Ukrainian authorities tending to consolidate amid economic challenges and understand there is no chance to suspend reforms."
Reuters exclusive: Scribbled note shows Nemtsov on trail of Russian deaths in Ukraine
"Some paratroopers from Ivanovo have got in touch with me. 17 killed, they didn't give them their money, but for now they are frightened to talk," said the note, shown to Reuters by Shorina.
"He did not want to say anything, just in case. He did not want to utter it out loud, which is why he wrote it down for me," she said.
Speaking earlier, NATO Deputy Secretary-General Alexander Vershbow also said that Putin's "aim seems to be to turn Ukraine into a failed state and to suppress and discredit alternative voices in Russia, so as to prevent a Russian 'Maidan.'"
Alexander Stubb thinks Finland could consider NATO membership:
Prime Minister Alexander Stubb said March 5 that Finland, which shares a 1,300-kilometer-long border with Russia, should not rule out the possibility of seeking membership of NATO over the next four years.
Finland is one of the countries in the Baltic region to have reported incursions by Russian military aircraft that have stepped up activity recently.
Stubb told a joint news conference with NATO's Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, "I think that it is very important that we -- during the span of the next government -- do not exclude the possibility of seeking NATO membership."
Finland faces a general election on April 19. An electoral term in Finland is four years.
He said if EU member Finland were to seek membership someday, it would have to have public endorsement.
A poll commissioned by Helsingin Sanomat newspaper on Thursday showed that support for joining NATO remained low at 27 percent, while 57 percent opposed membership.