Russia is considering allowing cryptocurrency to be used for international payments, Interfax news agency quoted a government official.

“The idea of using digital currencies in transactions for international settlements is being actively discussed,” Ivan Chebeskov, head of the finance ministry's financial policy department, was quoted as saying.

Russian officials are wrestling with how to regulate the country's crypto market and use of digital currencies, with the finance ministry opposed to the central bank's calls for a blanket ban.

Discussions have been ongoing for months but no consensus has yet been reached. The finance ministry is discussing adding the latest proposal on international payments to an updated version of a draft law, the Vedomosti newspaper also reported, citing government officials.

Ukraine holds out in Donbas city under heavy fire

Ukrainian forces on Sunday resisted a Russian assault on Sievierodonetsk, the largest city they still hold in the Luhansk region of the Donbas, but endured heavy artillery barrages, Ukrainian officials said. The shelling was so intense it was not possible to assess casualties and damage, Luhansk governor Serhiy Gaidai said.

Dozens of buildings have been destroyed in the past few days. The Ukrainian government meanwhile urged the West to provide it with more longer-range weapons in order to turn the tide in the war, now in its fourth month. “It's indescribably difficult there,” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. (Reuters)

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