Yulia Tymoshenko has left a Berlin hospital where she was being treated for back injuries and has returned to Ukraine — and possibly to politics, her Twitter message indicated.
"I am back. In every sense of the word. Thanks to everyone who supported and fought for me"" Tymoshenko said via Twitter on Wednesday.
The former prime minister who had been imprisoned during Ukraine's previous Moscow-backed administration did not say whether she planned to run for president in the May 25 election.
Opposition leader Vitali Klitschko said last month that Tymoshenko had told him that she wanted to run.
The Charite hospital in Berlin said in a statement earlier Wednesday that Tymoshenko had received two injections into her spinal column as part of treatment for three slipped discs that she suffered while imprisoned, The Associated Press reported. The injections have "drastically reduced" her pain and improved the function in her right leg, the statement said.
Tymoshenko was released from prison in February when Ukrainian protesters toppled the Moscow-backed government of Viktor Yanukovych, and she traveled to Germany for treatment on March 7.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.