Ukraine's Tymoshenko transferred to new prison: official

KIEV - Agence France-Presse

A file picture taken on October 11, 2011 shows Ukraine's former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko at the Kiev Pechersky court. AFP photo

Ukraine on Friday transferred jailed former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko from a Kiev detention centre to a prison in the eastern Kharkiv region to serve her seven year sentence.

"At 8:00 am (0600 GMT) Yulia Tymoshenko was transferred to a prison in the Kharkiv region to serve her sentence," Ukraine's prison service said in a statement, adding that a "comfortable minibus" was used for the transfer.

Tymoshenko was sentenced this year to seven years in jail after being convicted of abuse of power while in office, a verdict she claims was ordered by President Viktor Yanukovych and has severely damaged ties with the EU.