MOSCOW, March 31. /TASS/. Ukrainian authorities, by proposing to amend legislation in order to postpone elections, are aiming to hinder the negotiation process and undermine the peace model, put forth by US President Donald Trump’s team, Vladimir Zharikhin, deputy director at the Institute of CIS Countries, told TASS.
Earlier, head of Ukraine’s Central Election Commission Oleg Didenko said that the Ukrainian authorities are seeking to change legislation in order to delay the holding of elections after the lifting of martial law. According to current legislation, parliamentary and presidential elections must be announced within a month of the lifting of martial law. However, the authorities want to delay the holding of the elections under the pretext that now more time is needed to prepare for them.
"This is yet another attempt to make the negotiation process more complicated and introduce obstacles," the expert noted. According to him, "the model promoted by Trump’s team" notes the need to hold early elections in Ukraine.
Zharikhin added that Trump’s team thinks that it is necessary to restore the Ukrainian government’s full legitimacy, hold early presidential and parliamentary elections, and in order to do so - reach a ceasefire in order to hold peace talks as a third stage after the elections and establishment of the legitimacy of power in Ukraine. "The Ukrainian side has decided to undermine this model by the US," he explained. "In order to block this clear succession of events, they put forth a proposal that following the lifting of the state of emergency, the election cannot take place immediately."
According to Andrey Bystritsky, board chairman of the Valdai International Discussion Club’s Development and Support Foundation, the Kiev regime’s initiative may also be related to the fear of encountering a sharp reaction by Ukrainian society which is shaken by the current state of affairs. In a conversation with TASS, the expert noted that the authorities are also wary both of the reaction of Ukrainian citizens domestically and those abroad.
Situation around elections
The parliamentary and presidential elections in Ukraine have not been held due to martial law. Vladimir Zelensky’s presidential authority officially expired on May 20, 2024, but he is doing everything possible to remain in power, including removing potential political opponents and postponing the peace settlement.
As Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly said, Russia needs to know who in Kiev it can expect to sign legally binding documents now that Zelensky is no longer a legitimate leader. Given the illegitimacy of the current authorities, any agreements signed with them would be null and void. On March 28, Putin noted that international practice includes the introduction of external governance which will pave the way to legitimate talks on the Ukrainian settlement.