Oleksandr Tymoshenko, the husband of former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, has left Ukraine and is seeking a political asylum in the Czech Republic due to the intense pressure being exerted on the ex-premier through her family, the press service of the Batkivschyna Party reported on Friday.
"This move by Oleksandr Tymoshenko is a response to immoral attempts to pressurize and torture Yulia Tymoshenko through the persecution of her family and friends. After failing to neutralize the Batkivschyna Party leader through courts and prisons, mockery and dual arrests, the regime, after illegally resuming the criminal cases that were closed by the Supreme Court 15 years ago, has begun to prosecute the family and friends of the former prime minister," the party’s press service reported.
The report also notes: "[Ukrainian President Viktor] Yanukovych has chosen the dirtiest way: to neutralize Yulia Tymoshenko through putting pressure on the members of her family. The decision to seek political asylum is predetermined by [Oleksandr Tymoshenko’s] desire to deprive the regime of additional levers of pressure on the Batkivschyna Party leader."
As reported, Tymoshenko’s husband, Oleksandr, who is now in the Czech Republic, has asked for a political asylum in that country.
According to the Czech newspaper Pravo, Tymoshenko submitted a respective application in late December 2011.
