Hillary Clinton offers support to jailed Yulia Tymoshenko

 US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton offered support to Ukraine’s former premiere jailed Yulia Tymoshenko and other sentenced former statesmen.

Yulia Tymoshenko’s official website has posted Clinton’s letter which says that the United States will continue to advocate for judicial due process and the release of Yulia Tymoshenko and the other imprisoned former senior government officials.

“We will continue to advocate for judicial due process and the release of you and the other imprisoned former senior government officials as a critical step in that process. Also, please be assured we are committed to free elections with the participation of all legitimate political candidates and parties in Ukraine. This is another critical step toward European Union integration and something your country has done successfully in the past. I hope this will again be the case in the October parliamentary elections,” Hillary Clinton wrote in a letter to Yulia Tymoshenko.

The Secretary of State said that she has been following developments in Yulia Tymoshenko’s case closely. “The United States was disappointed the Kyiv Court of Appeals upheld your conviction without addressing issues raised during the trial about selective prosecution and the administration of justice. Indeed, our concerns were then heightened by the sudden decision to transfer you to a prison far from Kyiv, especially given reports about your medical condition.”

“We remain equally troubled by the cases against other former senior government officials. I am heartened to see that at this difficult moment you continue to support Ukraine's integration into the European Union and good relations with all of its neighbors. Democracy and development go hand in hand. Please be assured in that regard that the United States will continue to support the aspirations of the Ukrainian people to transform their country into a prosperous European democracy,” she said.

http://www.panorama.am/en/politics/2012/01/11/klinton-timoshenko/