Tymoshenko's cassation in gas case read out in court

Ukraine's High Specialized Court for Civil and Criminal Cases has read out the cassation complaints filed by Yulia Tymoshenko's defense lawyers against the verdict in the gas case.

Presenting a report on the cassation, the rapporteur summed up the essence of the complaint filed by lawyer Oleksandr Plakhotniuk against the gas verdict, an Interfax correspondent said.

In particular, the lawyer asks the verdict to be quashed and the case to be closed. The lower court ignored the defense arguments and sided with the prosecution, and an appellate court upheld this verdict, the lawyer said in the complaint.

In essence the verdict is a political decision, Plakhotniuk said. The case files also contain a number of cassation complaints against certain decisions by the Pechersky Court upheld by the appellate court.

After the report presiding judge Stanislav Mischenko asked the defense lawyer to provide explanations in support his complaint.

Plakhotniuk said he was surprised by the delay of the cassation hearing. Nothing stopped the court from hearing the cassation back in May under the same circumstances as now, he said.

"I thank the court for doing that today (starting the cassation hearing)," the lawyer said.