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Tymoshenko: president 'destroying Ukraine'

KIEV, Ukraine, Jan. 9 (UPI) -- Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko said she was launching a civil disobedience campaign and accused the president of destroying the country.

Tymoshenko is serving a seven-year prison sentence after being convicted on charges she abused her authority in helping to broker a natural gas deal with Russian company Gazprom in 2009. European leaders have expressed concern about her detention, saying the charges appear to be politically motivated.

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In an open letter to Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, the former prime minister and opposition leader said she was embarking on a campaign of civil disobedience.

"So as to reduce public fear of your regime, so as to once again say that you're humiliating and destroying Ukraine, I am starting a personal campaign of civil disobedience," Tymoshenko's letter read.

Ukraine's formal association talks with the European Union were suspended following the sentencing of Tymoshenko.

"From this moment on I no longer recognize your prosecutors and investigators," her letter read.

October elections in Ukraine left the ruling Party of Regions in power, though Tymoshenko's opposition Fatherland Party was a close second.

European observers expressed concern about the "abuse of power" during the election. The European Parliament said Ukraine failed to pass "a key test" during the contest.

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