Canada's Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will hold a joint press conference Friday with Ukrainian Finance Minister Sergii Marchenko following spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank in Washington, D.C.

They will be joined by International Development Minister Harjit Sajjan.

It comes as Russia plans to take full control of the Donbas and southern Ukraine during the second phase of what it calls a special military operation.

The Interfax and TASS news agencies cited Rustam Minnekayev, the deputy commander of Russia's central military district as saying the full control of southern Ukraine would improve Russian access to Moldova's pro-Russian breakaway region of Transdniestria, which borders Ukraine and which Kyiv fears could be used as a launch pad for new attacks against it.

For more info, please go to https://globalnews.ca/news/8777762/russia-southern-ukraine-donbas-deputy-commander/
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