Ukraine's ex-prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko on June 24 went on trial for alleged abuse of power, denouncing her rival President Viktor Yanukovych as a coward fearing political competition. "Yanukovych is a coward. He is afraid of political competition and opposition," Tymoshenko, wearing a cream-colored suit and sporting her trademark golden braid wrapped around her head, told reporters. The former premier, known as the "Iron Lady", is accused of abuse of power in connection with a contract she signed with Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin after a brief interruption of gas deliveries from Russia in early 2009. Read the story here
