When Will Ukraine Hold Elections? Zelensky Responds

Ukraine will only hold elections once it has security guarantees in place and a ceasefire with Russia, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Wednesday, pushing back at suggestions he was planning to stage fresh ballots under US pressure.

Elections in Ukraine have been effectively suspended since Russia invaded in 2022 due to martial law.

"We will move to elections when all the necessary security guarantees are in place," Zelensky told reporters, including AFP journalists, in a voice note. 

"I have said it's very simple to do: establish a ceasefire, and there will be elections," he added.

If Russia also agrees, it may be possible to "end hostilities by summer", Zelensky said.

The Financial Times reported earlier that Ukraine was mulling the possibility of holding a presidential election within the next three months, after facing pressure from Washington. 

The report also suggested the election announcement could be made as early as February 24, the fourth anniversary of the Russian invasion. 

Zelensky later said in an X post that this would be "an utterly stupid idea to use such a date to talk about politics".

He also wrote that Washington proposed holding another round of talks on ending the war next week, to which Ukraine agreed. But, according to Zelensky, "Russia is hesitating" and has not yet responded to the offer. 

Zelensky has repeatedly said Ukraine can hold elections after a peace deal with Russia is signed, but has recently signalled willingness for a speedy vote as part of a US plan to end the war.

He has also said any deal that involves ceding territory to Moscow should be put to a referendum.

Zelensky, a former comedian who played a fictionalised president on Ukrainian TV before running for office, was elected in 2019 for a five-year term.

Russia has repeatedly tried to question Zelensky's legitimacy post-2024, when that term would have expired.

There are a number of practical obstacles to holding a ballot, such as security during any campaign and vote, and what to do with the millions of Ukrainian refugees forced abroad.

Polling shows little appetite among the Ukrainian public for a ballot during the war.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)