Court to consider Tymoshenko appeal on Dec. 1

Kiev appeals court on Tuesday scheduled preliminary hearings on an appeal by jailed ex-Ukrainian prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko for December 1, twelve days before the earlier set date, Tymoshenko’s lawyer Serhiy Vlasenko said. “Most likely, Tymoshenko will be unable to attend the first meeting on the appeal due to her health,” Vlasenko told journalists, adding that the ex-premier’s new alarming symptoms include “occasional nosebleeds.” Tymoshenko’s lawyers said recently her health condition had worsened - she could just barely walk because of back trouble, and urged medical assistance for their client outside of the prison where she is being held. 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 also said the first appeal meeting will be technical but added that it will show whether the authorities plan to consider the case quickly or analyze it thoroughly. The lawyer said that when he last saw Tymoshenko on Monday, no proper medical assistance was provided to her. “Tymoshenko’s health condition deteriorated despite [Ukrainian President Viktor] Yanukovych’s statements that she will be provided with medical assistance,” he said. Yanukovych said on Monday he had ordered that conditions for jailed Tymoshenko be maintained “at a European level.”