Ukrainian opposition leader and ex-premier Yulia Tymoshenko said on Monday she had no plans to seek political asylum abroad to avoid criminal charges.
"President [Viktor] Yanukovych wants me to flee from my own country. The time will come when they will be the ones who have to flee," Tymoshenko told journalists, adding "I'm not going to leave."
A criminal case has recently been launched against Tymoshenko, the country's most popular opposition leader and the president's key opponent in last year's elections. The former prime minister is accused of misusing state funds received from the sale of carbon emission quotas under the Kyoto Protocol to pay pensions.
Other members of her cabinet, including former ministers of the interior, environment and defense, have been placed under arrest.
Former economic minister, Bohdan Danylyshyn, charged with abuse of office and embezzling $1.75 million, received political asylum in the Czech Republic last week.
KIEV, January 17 (RIA Novosti)
