Good morning. We'll get the live blog rolling today with a couple of overnight tweets that caught our eye:
We are now closing the live blog for today. Until we resume again tomorrow morning, you can keep up with all our ongoing Ukraine coverage here.
Here's an update from our news desk:
The ratings agency Standard and Poor's has upgraded Ukraine's credit rating from "selective default" after Kyiv managed to strike a major debt write-down deal.
The New York-based agency said on October 19 that it was raising Ukraine's foreign currency sovereign rating from "SD" to "B-/B" -- a grade defined as "highly speculative" but one that leaves the door open to future borrowing from abroad.
"The rating action follows the completion of Ukraine's distressed debt exchange on October 14," Standard and Poor's said in a statement.
The ratings agency downgraded Ukraine to selective default on September 25.
Ukraine was then still negotiating with its commercial creditors aimed at easing its outsized debt burden and keeping on track a life-support package led by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
(AFP, Interfax)
One of the highlights of Ukraine Fashion Week came at the weekend with a showcase of vintage national costumes:
Designers put old-fashioned clothing on the catwalk at a Ukrainian Fashion Week event in Kyiv on October 18. As part of a project called "Vytoky," or "Roots," models displayed vintage folk costumes and jewelry from across Ukraine. The dresses and accessories, some dating back to the 19th century, were borrowed from museums and private collections. Fashion show organizers highlighted the important role that clothing can play in building national identity. (Serhiy Korovayniy, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service)
Vintage Ukrainian Fashion In The Spotlight
Remember that incident we mentioned earlier where a Russian jet was reportedly buzzed by a French plane? Turns out that it was actually a Swiss aircraft. (Read more here)