Jailed former Ukrainian prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko has been moved from a prison to a clinic in Kharkov to receive recommended medical treatment, Ukraine’s State Penitentiary Service said.
“Tymoshenko has arrived to the [Kharkov’s Ukrzaliznytsi] clinic where she will undergo a course of treatment recommended by the German and Ukrainian doctors,” the service said in a statement on Friday.
Tymoshenko’s health has deteriorated since her pre-trial detention began in August 2011 and she claimed she was no longer able to attend court hearings due to back problems.
A team of German doctors, which examined Tymoshenko earlier in April, has confirmed that the ex-premier is unable to participate in court proceedings.
The jailed politician has repeatedly refused treatment in a penal colony where she is serving her seven-year sentence on charges of abuse of office, for exceeding her authority in signing a 2009 gas deal with Russia.
She has also been charged in a new case with attempting to embezzle $405 million of government funds during the 1990s, when she headed Ukraine’s state corporation United Energy Systems.
Tymoshenko maintains her innocence in both cases.
