KIEV, August 29 - RAPSI. Ukraine's High Specialized Court on Civil and Criminal Cases has dismissed former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko's appeal on Wednesday and left in force her seven year sentence in the gas case.

In her appeal, Tymoshenko asked the court to acquit her and to close the criminal case against her, as she has committed no crime. The prosecutors insisted that the court panel uphold the sentence.

In October 2011, Tymoshenko was sentenced to seven years in prison for abuse of power after signing a gas contract with Russia in 2009. She is serving her sentence in a Kharkiv women's prison. She has been receiving treatment at a Kharkiv hospital since May 2012. She was diagnosed with a spinal disc herniation.

In late March, a second case against Tymoshenko was submitted to the Kharkiv Kievsky District Court. The case deals with her activity at United Energy Systems. She is suspected of financial machinations.

The verdict has aggravated Ukraine's ties with the EU. The West has called the sentence politically motivated, while the Ukrainian government has flatly denied the charges.

Last December, an appeals court left the sentence without amendment and transferred the former prime minister to a Kharkiv prison. Her defense appealed to the Supreme Specialized Court for Considering Criminal and Civil Cases in February. The court was made the final instance after judicial reforms in 2010. Its decisions are not subject to dispute.