YALTA - Condoleezza Rice, the former US Secretary of State, warned Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich that the reputation of his administration and nation will be tarnished by alleged political persecutions.
“Nations have to be careful that political persecutions … the reputation of the country will indeed be sullied,” she said at the Yalta European Strategy forum in Crimea.
She highlighted the case of Yulia Tymoshenko, the former prime minister who is now in jail serving a seven-year sentence for abuse of office.
“The trial and imprisonment of Yulia Tymoshenko has caused concern. The case is being closely monitored,” she warned.
She said that Ukrainian people should push their own government on the issue to achieve a result in the Tymoshenko case, as well as to reverse the rollbacks on democracy.
Earlier in the day, Rice ignored a photo opportunity with Yanukovych, who delivered a speech at the same conference earlier in the day.
Rice is not the only high-ranking official who have made strong statements on Tymoshenko since the forum started on Sept. 13. EU Commissioner for Enlargement Stefan Fuele also said the Tymoshenko case is key if Ukraine wants to make progress in its relationship with the European Union.
Aleksander Kwasniewski, the former President of Poland and one of Ukraine’s greatest friends in Europe, also highlighted the case.
Kyiv Post editor Katya Gorchinskaya can be reached at [email protected].
