Kiev court to consider Tymoshenko appeal

KIEV. December 1. KAZINFORM A court in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev will begin preliminary hearings on an appeal by jailed former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko on Thursday; Kazinform refers to RIA Novosti.

Tymoshenko's lawyer, Serhiy Vlasenko, said recently his client's health had worsened and that she could barely walk due to back problems. He wants her to receive outside medical assistance.

Tymoshenko was sentenced in October to seven years behind bars for abuse of office over a gas deal she cut with Russia in 2009, a verdict internationally condemned as politically motivated.

Vlasenko said the first appeal meeting would be "technical," but would indicate how serious the authorities were about the appeal.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych said on Monday he had ordered that conditions for Tymoshenko be maintained "at a European level"; Kazinform cites RIA Novosti.

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