November 27 is the 65th birthday of Yulia Tymoshenko, the former beautiful Prime Minister of Ukraine and "Princess of Natural Gas." In the late 20th century and early 21st century, she was the most sexy and dazzling political star in Ukraine. Her vigorous political ambition and sharp political intuition made countless men look up to her, and her hair bun with braids became her unique "signature image."

Now, this former goddess of the Ukrainian revolution has turned 65 years old. Although she still serves as the chairman of the "Fatherland Party" in the Verkhovna Rada, her influence on the Ukrainian political stage has gradually declined, making people feel the bittersweet feeling of a hero's twilight years and a beauty's downfall.

Tymoshenko was born in the winter of 1960. The cold winds of the Dnipro River had not yet dispersed the dust of the industrial city, and she began her life journey in the place later known as the "City of Ukraine's Fate." Yulia Tymoshenko—this name would eventually become a symbol of an era, but when she was a young girl, she never imagined that one day she would make Ukraine tremble.

She was not born with a golden key to politics. She started her higher education at the Mining Institute and later transferred to the economics department of the National University—this was a phase where a girl sculpted her future in numbers and logic. In 1984, she obtained a degree in economics, a certificate that was like a boat ticket, taking her to seas far beyond ordinary lives.

In the late 1980s, the old curtain of the Soviet Union was slowly falling, while her stage curtain was just rising. While others were still confused and uncertain, she took the first step into the business world—she opened a video rental store with her husband, which was her first direct confrontation with the market game. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union, Ukraine was filled with ruins, but she had already turned her attention to fuel and energy, a new continent, like a sensitive hound sniffing out the scent of the future among the ruins.

In 1995, she became the leader of the United Energy Systems of Ukraine (UESU), managing the import of natural gas from Russia. Thus, the title of "Princess of Natural Gas" quietly rested on her golden hair like a crown. At that time, Tymoshenko, dressed in a professional suit with a sharp and cold gaze, challenged the male-dominated economic world. She wasn't entering an industry—she was redefining it.

However, her real stage was politics, not business.

In 1996, she first entered the Ukrainian parliament building. At that moment, history gently knocked on her shoulder. Her speeches in the parliament were sharp, quick, elegant, and deadly, like needles piercing through the defenses of her opponents. From 1999 to 2001, she served as Vice Prime Minister, holding the country's energy lifeline. This was not honor, it was power—and she knew how to master it.

In 2004, the "Orange Revolution" broke out. The entire country burned in the cold winter, flags fluttered on the square, and the people's shouts shook the sky of Ukraine. Tymoshenko stood at the front of the crowd, her golden braids like a halo, armor, and more like a flag. She wasn't giving a speech; she was tearing open the darkness with the people.

In January 2005, she became the first female Prime Minister in Ukrainian history. That day, not only was a record rewritten, but also a force was verified—women could not be just vases or accessories; they could be swords, fires, and directions.

However, fate never gives only glory; it also brings a bitter cup.

In the 2010 election, she fell from power. In 2011, she was sentenced to prison, the coldness of the cell and the icy walls isolated her from power, freedom, and air. Some said she was defeated—but she didn't collapse. In prison, she embroidered crosses, wrote letters, and sat in long quiet nights. She was like a pine tree bent by wind and snow, but its roots grew deeper.

In 2014, she left the prison, walking slowly, but with a determined gaze. Those who tried to eliminate her through imprisonment would find out they were wrong—she lost only her freedom, not her will; she lost her position, not her soul.

From a daring entrepreneur to the "Princess of Natural Gas"; from a parliamentary fighter to the "Goddess of the Orange Revolution"; from Prime Minister to a prisoner; from a power holder in history to a witness of history—Tymoshenko's life is the brightest and darkest chapter of modern Ukrainian history.

Some say she was defeated by time, but I believe: she simply completed her era's mission. She showed people that a woman could face stormy waves with a graceful smile; she could maintain the warmth of her eyes and the hardness of her bones even in the cold collision of steel politics.

Tymoshenko is not a simple person; she is a legend. Even if time has dyed her golden braids with silver and softened her sharp edges into calm, she has already proven that fate can change her circumstances, but it cannot change her color. She is an indelible mark of Ukraine.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7577341054416978472/

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