Roman Olearchyk writes:Yulia Tymoshenko, Ukraine’s former prime minister, has filed a lawsuit in a U.S. court accusing companies and affiliated business backers close to Viktor Yanukovych, the country’s president, of defrauding the nation of billions of dollars worth of natural gas, “racketeering” and political persecution. In filing the tort lawsuit on April 27 with the US District Court in Manhattan, Tymoshenko upped the ante in her stand-off with Yanukovych, who narrowly beat her in the 2010 presidential election. The suit also continues a longstanding domestic political battle over lucrative gas deals between Ukraine and Russia.
Mr Firtash and RosUkrEnergo, the gas trader he co-owns with Russia’s Gazprom, did not immediately respond to inquiries about the suit. They have previously denied any wrongdoing.
The suit was filed as Ukrainian prosecutors prepare to file a criminal case against Ms Tymoshenko. She is accused of illegally brokering a gas agreement while prime minister in 2009 with her Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.
