Ukrainian lawmakers vote to lift ban on sale of farmland by 2020

Ukrainian lawmakers voted on Wednesday to remove a ban on the sale of farmland for the first time in nearly two decades, a move supported by the country's foreign backers that risks a political backlash.

The proposal must be voted on a second time in order to come into force. The ban would be lifted in October 2020 and the government says the move would add 2-3 percentage points to Ukraine's gross domestic growth in its first year.