Ex-Ukraine PM Tymoshenko Leaves Jail for Hospital

Yulia Tymoshenko, Ukraine's imprisoned former prime minister, was moved Wednesday from jail to a hospital for treatment of a severe back condition under the supervision of a German doctor.

The move was likely to allay at least some Western concerns over Tymoshenko's health and handling in prison. Top EU officials and some EU governments have vowed to boycott the European football championship matches co-hosted by Ukraine in June, and Ukraine had to cancel a regional cooperation summit this weekend after most heads of central and eastern European states canceled their visits over the Tymoshenko case.

Tymoshenko, 51, the country's top opposition leader, has been on hunger strike for more than two weeks to protest alleged abuse, and Ukraine's government has come under intense Western pressure to provide Tymoshenko with suitable medical care.

Deputy Health Minister Raisa Moiseyenko said Tymoshenko was moved from her prison in Kharkiv to a local clinic Wednesday morning. Dr. Lutz Harms, a neurologist with Berlin's Charite clinic, will supervise her treatment at the hospital because Tymoshenko does not trust government-controlled doctors.

Moiseyenko said she hopes the hospitalization and treatment will prompt Tymoshenko to end her hunger strike.

Tymoshenko has been sentenced to seven years in prison on charges of abuse of office while conducting natural gas import negotiations with Russia in 2009. The West has condemned the verdict as politically motivated and has piled pressure on Ukraine to free her and end the alleged mistreatment.