Ukraine delays hearings in Tymoshenko tax case

KHARKIV, Ukraine (Reuters) - A Ukrainian court on Tuesday put off until July 23 the hearings in a tax evasion case against former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko due to her inability to attend the trial on health grounds.

Tymoshenko, sentenced to seven years in prison last October on a separate abuse-of-office charge, is being treated for back trouble in a state-run hospital.

The conviction of Tymoshenko, a key political opponent of President Viktor Yanukovich, has soured Ukraine's ties with the European Union which sees the ruling as an example of selective justice.

(Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Editing by Louise Ireland)