Tymoshenko agrees to medical treatment

Yulia Tymoshenko, Ukraine’s jailed former prime minister, agreed to start medical treatment for a herniated disc on Tuesday, her lawyer told reporters on Friday. According to the Associated Press, she will be treated at a local hospital in Kharkiv under the supervision of a German doctor. Tymoshenko is currently serving a seven-year jail sentence in a Kharkiv penal colony for her role in negotiating a gas supply contract with Russia in 2009; an appeal in that case is scheduled to be heard by a Kyiv court on May 15. A second trial for embezzlement was delayed until May 21 because she was unable to attend the proceedings due to her health and could not be tried in absentia.

Brad Wells: The news of treatment for Tymoshenko is a welcome development. We noted last week that a compromise was likely to be reached soon, with Tymoshenko’s hunger strike (began on April 20) forcing new urgency in her treatment. The announcement should alleviate some of the pressure the government has encountered in the last two weeks, with the heads of several European states promising to boycott an upcoming summit in Yalta and Euro-2012 matches in Ukraine. This looks to be a bit of a face-saving move and we still do not expect any leniency on pending charges against Tymoshenko or a pardon.