Roman Olearchyk writes: Yulia Tymoshenko, Ukraine’s leading opposition figure, was arrested on Aug 5, triggering fresh concerns that the administration of Viktor Yanukovych was persecuting opponents and backsliding on democracy.
Speaking cautiously, western diplomats in Kyiv expressed shock and said the arrest of Tymoshenko, a leader of Ukraine’s pro-democracy Orange Revolution in 2004, could drive a wedge into Kyiv’s European integration plans. One western diplomat described the incident as an additional sign that Kyiv was one year into Yanukovych’s presidency swaying away from core EU values, such as democracy; and that this could jeopardize chances of wrapping up free trade and association agreements with Brussels by the end of this year. Click here to read report.
