Ukraine to sell 'war bonds' to fund armed forces

Ukraine's government has said it plans to sell bonds from Tuesday to pay for its armed forces as they defend the country from a Russian invasion.

The announcement comes after a slide in the prices of Ukraine's existing bonds.

Ukraine's finance ministry also sought to reassure international investors that it will not default on its existing debts.

Investors are concerned that Russia's invasion of the country will push Kyiv to default on its debt.

In a Twitter thread, the Ministry of Finance of Ukraine said: "In the time of military aggression of the Russian Federation, the Ministry of Finance offers citizens, businesses and foreign investors to support the budget of Ukraine by investing in military government bonds."

The ministry said that each one-year bond would have a nominal value of 1,000 Ukrainian hryvnia (£24.80; $33.27) and the interest rate offered to investors would "be determined in the auction".

"The proceeds from the bonds will be used to meet the needs of the Armed Forces of Ukraine," it added.

The announcement on Monday came as the Russian rouble slumped by almost 30% against the US dollar, while its international bonds were hit hard.

That came after Western countries imposed unprecedented sanctions on Moscow in response to its invasion of Ukraine.

Russian President Vladimir Putin responded to the sanctions with an order barring citizens from transferring money outside of Russia, including for debt payments.

Meanwhile, Moscow's stock market, which saw heavy losses last week, will be closed for a second day on Tuesday.