Vice President Joe Biden spoke today with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko about the situation in the east and the Ukrainian government’s steps to set its economy on a path to recovery and sustainable growth. President Poroshenko informed the Vice President of continued shelling in the vicinity of Donetsk and Mariupol by Russia-backed separatists, and further casualties among Ukrainian service members. The two leaders also discussed the OSCE’s inability to verify the pull back of Russia’s heavy weapons from the front lines. The Vice President welcomed the Ukrainian government’s plan to pass critical reform legislation next week as part of an ambitious program of reforms that Ukraine has developed in cooperation with the IMF. The reforms will help to stabilize the economy and support disbursement of significant international financing in the near term.