PGO calling for open trial in Tymoshenko's gas case

Ukraine's Prosecutor General's Office insists on an open trial in a criminal case against former Prime Minister and leader of the Batkivschyna party Yulia Tymoshenko on charges of abuse of power during the signing of gas contracts with Russia in 2009.

"Our position is that any high profile case involving officials, unless they are classified as secret, should be considered in open court," Interfax-Ukraine learned at the Media Relations Department of the Prosecutor General's Office on Thursday.

The PGO's media relations department said that the PGO supports "maximum fairness, openness and transparency of the trial in this case."

"We insist the trial should be public, representatives of media and non-government organization should be present in the courtroom; the trial should be covered in compliance with the rules laid down in the current laws, the prosecution and defense should be given the possibility to present their views and give reasonable answers," the Prosecutor General's Office said.

Pechersky District Court of Kyiv starts hearings of the gas case against Tymoshenko start in the morning on June 24.