Amid war, pressure Zelenskyy confirms readiness for elections

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told two Italian newspapers that he is “always ready for elections,” responding to US President Donald Trump’s assertion that he was leveraging the war with Russia to postpone polls.

Speaking to la Repubblica and Il Messaggero ahead of his talks with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Rome, Zelenskyy stated, “I’m always ready for elections,” directly addressing Trump’s comments, Caliber.Az reports, citing Italian media.

In an interview with Politico, the US president accused Kyiv of "using war" to avoid elections which have been postponed under the imposition of martial law since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

"I think it's an important time to hold an election. They’re using war not to hold an election, but I would think the Ukrainian people would... should have that choice," Trump said.

"You know, they talk about a democracy, but it gets to a point where it’s not a democracy anymore."

Without martial law, a Ukrainian presidential election would have been due in March 2024.

Trump reiterated the criticisms he made on Sunday about Volodymyr Zelensky, claiming that the Ukrainian president had not read the US plan to end the war.

By Vafa Guliyeva