The IMF and Ukrainian officials reached a staff level agreement on a new 18 month, $5 billion stand-by arrangement to help Kiev cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, the Washington-based financial institution said Thursday. The agreement is subject to approval by the International Monetary Fund's management and executive board, which will look at the deal "in the coming weeks," the IMF statement said. The Fund's governing body generally follows the recommendations of the technical teams. vog/ch/st