[url]http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-15263475[/url]
[QUOTE][B]The EU has warned Ukraine of "profound implications" after former leader Yulia Tymoshenko was jailed for charges she says are politically motivated.[/B]
EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said the union would "reflect on its policies" towards Kiev.
Tymoshenko was jailed for seven years for acting beyond her powers in sealing a gas deal with Russia in 2009.
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, who signed the deal, said he could not understand the court's verdict.
"It is dangerous and counterproductive to cast the entire package of agreements into doubt," Mr Putin was quoted as saying by Reuters news agency.
Russia's foreign ministry had earlier said the ruling had a "clear anti-Russian subtext".
The judge ruled that Tymoshenko had "used her powers for criminal ends" by pushing Ukraine's state energy firm Naftogaz into a deal with Russia's Gazprom.
[B]'Regrettable' case[/B]
Several other European countries were also scathing about the sentencing, with Sweden's Foreign Minister Carl Bildt labelling it a "political show-trial".
Baroness Ashton, who has been negotiating a free-trade deal with Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovych, said the trial "did not respect international standards".
Analysts say the jailing of Tymoshenko has threatened to torpedo the free-trade deal, which was due to begin in December.
Tymoshenko's supporters say Mr Yanukovych orchestrated the trial to get rid of his bitter political rival.
The president had been under pressure from Western governments and rights groups to downgrade the charges against Tymoshenko to administrative offences rather than criminal.
In comments after the sentencing, Mr Yanukovych said he understood the reaction to the "regrettable" case, adding that Tuesday's verdict was not final.
"There is the court of appeal ahead and what decision it will take and under which legislation has great importance," he said.
Hundreds of Tymoshenko supporters gathered outside the court to wait for Judge Rodion Kireyev's verdict, some getting into scuffles with security forces.
He jailed her for seven years and banned her from political office for three years.
He also ordered her to pay back 1.5bn hrivnas ($186m; £119m) he said had been lost by Naftogaz as a result of the deal she signed.
[B]Allies no more[/B]
Russia pipes gas to Western Europe across Ukrainian territory and relations between the two ex-Soviet states have long been dogged by disputes over transit fees and unpaid bills.
As the verdict was read out over several hours, Tymoshenko stared at her iPad, apparently not listening to the judge.
She has been in custody for contempt of court since 5 August.
Tymoshenko was the heroine of the Western-leaning Orange Revolution - the sudden street protests that erupted after a fraudulent presidential election in 2004.
She was made prime minister shortly afterwards.
But the next few years saw the reform movement stagnate.
Tymoshenko fell out with her Orange allies, and their constant bickering paralysed the country just as it was facing
a deep economic crisis.
In 2010, Tymoshenko was forced into opposition as Mr Yanukovych rose to power.
Some of her former Orange allies - including former President Viktor Yushchenko - testified against her in the court case.
[/QUOTE]
This whole case is retarded.
A country where the president jails people just because they're his political opponents is not a country I want to live in. Fuck this government.
[QUOTE=Laserbeams;32729924]This whole case is retarded.
A country where the president jails people just because they're his political opponents is not a country I want to live in. Fuck this government.[/QUOTE]
Gotta love freedom
[QUOTE=Laserbeams;32729924]This whole case is retarded.
A country where the president jails people just because they're his political opponents is not a country I want to live in. Fuck this government.[/QUOTE]
Start a revolution.
snip
Ukraine is just another country run by corrupt officials. They are uneducated, greedy, unprincipled, arrogant pigs. Don't go to this country. Especially stay away from airports or anywhere you might find customs officers. They are paid thieves of the government. They will seize any property that they think is valuable and, can you believe this, by PRESIDENTIAL DECREE are required to confiscate it. Yes, their pig president actually ordered all seized property confiscated as of the beginning of 2012.
If you live in a free country... STAY THERE. Or only visit others like it. Ukraine is nothing but a toilet for gangster bureaucrats. I have only pity for the hard working people of this country who have to live under the thumbs of such pigs.
Good thinking..[img]http://forexjobs.info/sd.gif[/img]
Despite the clear political motivation she was never really clean herself, she was in fact pretty bad when it came to corruption. I see this as just the circle repeating itself.
[QUOTE=Samiam22;32735648]Start a revolution.[/QUOTE]
Because that worked out so well last time.
[QUOTE=Mabus;35883632]Despite the clear political motivation she was never really clean herself, she was in fact pretty bad when it came to corruption. I see this as just the circle repeating itself.[/QUOTE]
She was much better than the other politicians, and she genuinely tried to help the people and the country.
[QUOTE=Mindtwistah;35886087]She was much better than the other politicians, and she genuinely tried to help the people and the country.[/QUOTE]
Proof please.
[QUOTE=Samiam22;32735648]Start a revolution.[/QUOTE]
easier said than done
Last time I checked, Ukraine was a sovereign country and was considered to be sovereign by many other countries and organizations, including the EU.
Who the fuck is the EU to say the justice system in Ukraine is fucked up? Maybe it is, but it's none of EU's business. Political persecution? Any politician anywhere who's in jail can claim that he's persecuted, and guess what: most of them do just that, but that doesn't instantly make it true.
On what grounds is the EU asking for Tymoshenko's release?
Sorry, you need to Log In to post a reply to this thread.
