Crimea trial of RFE/RL contributor adjourned until April 18:
By the Crimean Desk of RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service
The trial of Crimean journalist Mykola Semena, an RFE/RL contributor who has been indicted on separatism-related charges by the Russian authorities controlling the Ukrainian peninsula, has been adjourned until April 18.
The cause of the latest delay was not immediately apparent.
Semena's attorney, Emil Kurbedinov, told RFE/RL on April 4 that two officers of Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB), the man who initially alerted Russian law enforcement officials to Semena's article about the status of Crimea, and an individual who read the article testified at the trial on April 3.
Shortly after the proceeding initially got under way on March 20, the presiding judge adjourned it until April 3 in order to grant a defense request to move the trial to a larger courtroom.
Semena is being prosecuted for a 2015 article he wrote for RFE/RL's Krym.Realii (Crimea Realities) website criticizing Moscow's 2014 seizure of Crimea from Ukraine.
Semena, 66, faces up to five years in prison if convicted. He denies the charges.
The United States, the European Union, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and international media watchdogs have expressed concern over Semena's case, which activists say is part of a Russian clampdown on independent media and dissent in Crimea.
IMF Approves $1 Billion Loan To Ukraine
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has approved a $1 billion loan payment to Ukraine.
The IMF is supporting Ukraine with a $17.5 billion bailout program in exchange for Kyiv implementing reforms and tackling corruption.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko wrote on his Facebook page on April 3 that the approval was "further recognition of Ukrainian reforms."
David Lipton, acting chair of the IMF's board, said Ukraine's economy was showing signs of improvement, with lower inflation and a doubling of international reserves.
But he said Kyiv still needed to tackle corruption "decisively."
The IMF had postponed the disbursement of the new loan following Kyiv's imposition of a trade embargo on areas controlled by Russia-backed separatists in the east of the country.
Ukraine received $1 billion from the IMF in October, its third tranche of money under the bailout program launched in March 2015.
Kyiv has received about $7.6 billion in total so far under the program.
Based on reporting by Reuters and AP
From the first deputy managing director of the IMF: