The main opponent of Yanukovich

Yulia Tymoshenko was Yanukovich’s main opponent in Ukraine’s 2010 presidential election. She lost the vote by 3 percentage points. The newly elected authorities have accused her of abuses connected with signing a gas contract with Russia in 2009. Her decisions have allegedly caused losses in the state-run company Naftohaz. In August 2011 Tymoshenko was arrested and two months later sentenced to 7 years in prison. She was released on February 22, 2014, pursuant to a special resolution of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, made after President Viktor Yanukovych fled the country and there has been a change of power.

Tymoshenko, Gaddafi’s money and Manafort’s operations

Yulia Tymoshenko’s 2010 presidential campaign may have been financed by Muammar Gaddafi. Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) has started its investigation on the issue. Moreover, according to “The Guardian”, Paul Manafort, a famous American lobbyist, between 2011 and 2012 ran an operation aimed at discrediting Tymoshenko.