KIEV, July 5 – Former Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko asked the International Monetary Fund on Monday to postpone a $14.9 billion loan to Ukraine until the government appeals a court ruling ordering return of a massive amount of gas to RosUkrEnergo.

Tymoshenko said the government in fact needs much less money to stabilize its budget and finances, while the lending may actually fuel corruption.

A Stockholm court ruled last month that Ukraine must return 12.1 billion cubic meters of gas worth $5.4 billion to RosUkrEnergo, which is co-owned by Dmytro Firtash, a key sponsor of President Viktor Yanukovych.

Tymoshenko accused the government of deliberately losing the case in favor of Firtash.

“The IMF loan is badly needed, but not for returning $5.4 billion to this corrupt group,” Tymoshenko said in an interview with ICTV late Monday.

The IMF announced Friday that it has agreed in principle to approve $14.9 billion in 2.5-year standby loan to Ukraine to stabilize its economy.

The final approval of the loan must come after the government approves a reform package that calls for increasing domestic natural gas prices and other unpopular measures within weeks.

The Washington-based lender announced its decision hours after a meeting of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Yanukovych in Kiev.

Ukraine’s economy contracted 15% on the year in 2009, reflecting a major drop in the country’s exports due to weak worldwide demand for steel and other commodities.

The IMF said Ukraine must enact enough fiscal adjustment to contain the government deficit to 5.5% of gross domestic product in 2010 and 3.5% in 2011 "with a view to setting public debt firmly on a declining path."

Meanwhile, Our Ukraine, the second largest opposition group in Parliament, on Monday called on for creation of an independent expert commission to monitor the use of the money from the IMF.

Our Ukraine also called on the IMF to take steps to make sure that the government does not misuse the funds.

Tymoshenko said the government probably needs between $3 billion and $5 billion to stabilize the 2010 budget.

She was also skeptical that the government will go ahead with the gas price hikes, and said the IMF money will probably be used to subsidize Naftogaz Ukrayiny, the national energy company.

“When they ask for $15 billion, they clearly plan to bailout Naftogaz,” Tymoshenko said. (tl/ez)