Viktor Medvedchuk, dressed in a grey tracksuit, is hard to make out on the TV screen in the sunlit courtroom in Lviv.
The former leader of Ukraine’s main pro-Russian political party was once a key figure in the high-level political and business circles of the two countries – and had the wardrobe to match. Until late June, that is, when the court seized his 17 tailored suits, as well as works of art, jewellery, his wife’s collection of fur coats, and his private train carriage.
Today, Medvedchuk, 67, is on trial for treason and aiding the Russian war effort – charges that could carry a sentence of up to life imprisonment.
