KIEV, March 27 (RIA Novosti) - Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko announced Thursday she would run for president in upcoming elections scheduled for May 25.
"Yes, I plan on running for the presidency of Ukraine," Tymoshenko said during a press conference in Kiev, adding that she would seek nomination as the candidate of the Batkyvshchina (Fatherland) party during a convention on Saturday.
Tymoshenko shot to international fame in 2004 when she joined Viktor Yushchenko in leading massive street protests in the Ukrainian capital against the results of a presidential election, in an event that became known as the Orange Revolution.
She served two terms as prime minister under President Yushchenko and narrowly lost to Viktor Yanukovych in the 2010 presidential election.
In October 2011, she was sentenced to seven years in prison for abuse of office after negotiating an allegedly unfavorable gas deal between Russia and Ukraine in January 2009.
Her supporters have always argued the charges were politically motivated, although many Ukrainians remain wary of her aggressive political style and are suspicious of her substantial personal wealth.
Tymoshenko began serving her sentence at the end of December 2011 at a prison in the eastern city of Kharkov, but was moved to a hospital in May 2012 after complaining of severe back problems.
She was released from jail by a decree of parliament on February 22 and later that day addressed a rally on Kiev's Independence Square, but the crowd's tepid reception has led political observers to suggest her presidential fortunes may not be favorable.
Russia has denied the legitimacy of the Ukrainian parliament, which called for the early election after ousting president Viktor Yanukovych during a coup last month.
