Financial ratings agency Standard & Poor's today downgraded Ukraine's long-term debt rating to "highly vulnerable" CC, considering the recent agreement with creditors and Ukraine has asked its foreign creditors to defer payments on all foreign debt for 24 months," S&P said in a statement quoted by Agence France-Presse (AFP).

"As a result of this order, we believe that default on foreign currency sovereign debt is almost certain," the rating agency added.

A group of Western creditors, including France, the United States, Germany, Japan and the United Kingdom, agreed on July 20 to a postponement of interest payments on Ukrainian debt at Kiev's request, calling on other Ukrainian bondholders to do the same.

S&P had already downgraded Ukraine's rating on May 27 to CCC+, also with a negative outlook, due to the "increased consequences of the Russian military attack," and said then that it expected "the Russian-Ukrainian military conflict to continue."

Russia launched a military offensive in Ukraine on February 24 that has killed more than 5,100 civilians, according to the UN, which warns that the actual number is likely to be much higher.

The Russian military offensive has caused the flight of more than 16 million people, of which more than 5.9 million have fled the country, according to the latest UN data. (Lusa)