Brussels, 01/09/2011 (Agence Europe) - The trial under way of Yulia Tymoshenko is giving rise to growing indignation within the EU and is proving to be such a thorny matter that it could become an obstacle to Ukraine's process for integration of the EU, said Polish President Bronis³aw Komorowski, speaking on 30 August and reported by the PAP agency. His statement was all the more powerful as it came the day of the visit by Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich to Poland, the country that has held EU Council presidency since 1 July. Saying the trial of Yulia Tymoshenko is seen by many countries as being of a political rather than criminal nature, the Polish president ended up expressing an opinion largely shared by EU member states and European institutions since the former prime minister and current president of the opposition party, Batkivchtchina (Fatherland), was indicted on 24 June. On Tuesday 30 August, an appeal was made by Wilfred Martens, who leads the European People's Party (EPP), together with US Senator John Mccain. They request that the prosecutor's office release Tymoshenko on bail, as her trial and the judicial practices that surround it are increasingly seen as selective prosecution against members of the opposition in Ukraine. Tymoshenko is accused of abuse of power when a gas agreement was signed with Russia in 2009 and is under the threat of up to 10 years in prison. She has always denied the accusations, accusing President Yanukovich in turn of using Soviet methods to destroy any form of opposition to his power. She has been held in detention since 5 August. The Ukrainian president, however, remains inflexible. Just prior to his arrival in Poland, he had announced that “discussions on this subject will not have an impact on the court's decision” as “the authorities should not interfere in the way justice works. Standards are European standards, in force in the democratic states”. Without a doubt, the dossier on the former prime minister will be one of the critical points covered at the informal meeting of foreign ministers in Sopot (Poland) on 2 and 3 September - all the more as the Polish Presidency believes the Eastern Partnership is a priority issue and Ukraine, for its part, hopes to move forward in coming months to establish free trade agreements with the EU. (J.K./transl.jl)