Yulia Tymoshenko verdict: Guilty

The Pechersky Court of Kiev found former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko guilty on the so-called gas case.

Chief judge Rodion Kireev stated when reading out the verdict that Tymoshenko exceeded her powers when she signed gas contracts with Russia in 2009, RIA Novosti reports. The court ruled that the former prime minister of Ukraine caused the financial damage of 1.5 billion hryvnas ($200 million) to the nation's state-run oil and gas company Naftogaz.

In 2009, Tymoshenko exceeded her powers when she personally approved the directives for gas talks with Moscow. The Ukrainian government refused to approve those directives before, Judge Kireev said.

Prior to the announcement of the verdict, Tymoshenko told reporters the following:

"This verdict is not going to change anything in my life and in my struggle."

She smiled to reporters and greeted them when entering the courtroom. "Long live Ukraine!" she said. Tymoshenko arrived in the courtroom wearing a gray dress and her trademark hairstyle.