There will be no active protest rallies due to the arrest of former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, Andrey Ermolaev, head of the National Institute for Strategic Studies told Xinhua in an exclusive interview on Friday.
"This arrest is not related to political activity of Tymoshenko, but is connected with the violation of the judicial process. Many Ukrainians are disappointed by Tymoshenko's behavior in the court, by her contempt of court and the law. There is no reason for ordinary people to take part in protest actions to support the Former Premier," he said.
In the same time first deputy leader of Ukrainian opposition " Batkivschina" party has urged Ukrainians for mass protest rallies to support its leader Tymoshenko. If millions of Ukrainians start active protests, Ukraine may get a new government in September, he said.
Tymoshenko was arrested on Friday after a judge ruled she had systematically violated court rules. Judge Rodion Kireyev said Tymoshenko was disrespectful to the members of the court and those participating in the trial.
Unrests erupted in Ukrainian capital after the ruling. Several hundred people gathered at Ukrainian capital's central street Khreshchatyk to support the opposition leader. They tried to block the road, but riot police officers pushed them away. The law enforcement staff surrounded Tymoshenko and escorted her to the territory of Lukyanovka jail.
In the trial, the prosecution alleged that Tymoshenko signed a gas supply deal with Russian gas export monopoly Gazprom in 2009, which caused damages to the Ukrainian economy. Tymoshenko denied the accusations and said the trial is an attempt by President Viktor Yanukovych to bar her from politics.