Ukraine dismisses EU plea over jailed Tymoshenko
KYIV (Reuters) – Ukrainian Prime Minister Mykola Azarov on Wednesday brushed aside Western concerns about his government’s treatment of opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko as misguided and unwarranted, indicating that Kyiv was unlikely to change its mind.
The EU has condemned the sentencing of former prime minister Tymoshenko – the top opponent of President Viktor Yanukovich – to seven years in prison last October as politically motivated.
Tymoshenko, who was found guilty of abusing her powers as prime minister in forcing through a 2009 gas deal with Russia, has denied any wrongdoing and said Yanukovich was pursuing a personal vendetta against her.
The European Union has urged Tymoshenko’s release and warned Ukraine its 27 members would otherwise refuse to ratify landmark agreements on political association and free trade with Kyiv.
Azayov agreed to European Parliament proposals to send a monitor to Tymoshenko’s appeal hearing and a group of medical experts to assess the health of the opposition leader who is now being treated for chronic back pain.
But Azarov, who addressed the European Parliament on Wednesday during his visit to Brussels, indicated his government would not yield to Western pressure, according to a transcript of his speech provided by the European Centre for a Modern Ukraine, a Brussels-based lobbying group for Ukraine.
“I am convinced that we shall overcome temporary difficulties created by our political opponents, unscrupulously misinforming and deluding you, using certain … manipulative techniques and hired provokers-professionals,” Azarov said.
“It is clear that the status of a politician, MP, or even former prime minister must not be used as an excuse to commit crimes,” he said in an apparent reference to Tymoshenko.
Azarov also said that “not all defence procedures have been exhausted” in Tymoshenko’s case.
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