The team of Ukraine's new President Viktor Yanukovych pledged Wednesday to revive cooperation with the International Monetary Fund as it met with an IMF mission in Kiev. Last year, the Washington-based Fund refused to release the latest tranche of a 16.4-billion-dollar rescue loan for the crisis-battered former Soviet republic amid criticism of Ukraine's fiscal policies. The IMF mission met on Wednesday with Ukrainian officials in the first such talks since last month's inauguration of Yanukovych, who has made revival of cooperation with the IMF a priority, local media reported. 'It is very important for Ukraine to re-establish relations with the IMF and rapidly obtain the new tranche,' Irina Akimova, deputy head of Yanukovych's administration, was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency. 'This is needed for sending a signal to all our investors and for resolving financial problems,' she added after the start of talks with the IMF mission, which is due to remain in Ukraine until April 2. The IMF's key condition is that Ukraine adopt a 'realistic' budget for 2010 limiting the deficit to no more than six percent of GDP, Akimova said. The Fund declined to release the latest installment of its rescue loan last fall after Ukraine's then-president Viktor Yushchenko signed a wage and pension bill that violated the IMF's strict conditions for the loan. A new IMF cash infusion would help Ukraine overcome a steep fiscal shortfall as the country struggles with an economic crisis that saw its GDP plummet by 15 percent last year. So far the Ukrainian government has received a total of 10.6 billion dollars of the 16.4-billion-dollar loan, which was extended in November 2008 to help Ukraine weather the global economic crisis. 