KHARKIV, Ukraine (AP) — Yulia Tymoshenko ended a nearly three-week-long hunger strike Wednesday as the imprisoned former Ukrainian prime minister was moved from jail to a hospital for treatment of a severe back condition under the supervision of a German doctor.
The news was likely to allay at least some Western concerns over Tymoshenko’s health and handling in prison.
European Union officials and some governments from the 27-nation bloc have vowed to boycott the European Championship soccer tournament, which begins in June and is co-hosted by Ukraine and Poland. Ukraine had to cancel a regional cooperation summit this weekend after most heads of Central and Eastern European states canceled their visits because of the Tymoshenko case.
Tymoshenko, 51, the country’s top opposition leader, had been on hunger since April 27 to protest alleged abuse. Ukraine’s government has come under intense Western pressure to provide Tymoshenko with suitable medical care.
Deputy Health Minister Raisa Moiseyenko said Tymoshenko was moved from her prison in Kharkiv to a local clinic Wednesday morning. Dr. Lutz Harms, a neurologist with Berlin’s Charite hospital, will supervise her treatment at the hospital because Tymoshenko doesn’t trust government-controlled doctors.
Dr. Harms told the Channel 5 television channel that Tymoshenko had ended her hunger strike and slowly was returning to a normal diet. He said she first would take only water and juice and then gradually add solid foods.
Tymoshenko was sentenced to seven years in prison on charges of abuse of office while conducting natural gas import negotiations with Russia in 2009. The West has condemned the verdict as politically motivated and has piled pressure on Ukraine to free her and end the alleged mistreatment.
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