Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, sporting her traditional braid and a designer coat, chatted on Wednesday by the fireside in a tent pitched in central Kiev by visiting Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Tymoshenko, shivering in the gloomy autumn weather, sat opposite Gaddafi in the green tent adorned with geometric symbols and images of palm trees and camels. The Libyan leader wore a black cloak and a bright blue cravat.

A few metres away a small bonfire blazed outside a state residence assigned to the Libyan leader during a three-day stay in Ukraine at the end of a tour of ex-Soviet states.

Gaddafi on Tuesday met President Viktor Yushchenko, the prime minister's former ally turned rival, with talks focusing on cooperation in energy and a double taxation agreements.