Trade between Moldova and the "separatist" area is robust. Transnistria is even part of Moldova's Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (DCFTA) with the European Union, something unheard of in other "breakaway" ex-Soviet entities.

Though the package may be a boost to Lukashenko, isolated from the West, the IMF package is in fact automatic.

The United States, along with allies close to Georgia, issued a statement via its mission to the Organisation for Security and Co-Operation in Europe.

New acting CEO Alexander Kamyshin said there was no way repairs to rolling stock could be completed in time to shift the grain.