Ukrainian leader responds to US President Trump\u2019s suggestion that he is using the war as an excuse to avoid elections.<\/p>\n
Published On 10 Dec 202510 Dec 2025<\/p>\n
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has declared that his government was prepared to hold elections within three months if the United States and Kyiv\u2019s other allies can ensure the security of the voting process<\/a>.<\/p>\n Zelenskyy issued his statement on Tuesday as he faced renewed pressure from US President Donald Trump, who suggested in an interview with a news outlet that the Ukrainian government was using Russia\u2019s war on their country as an excuse to avoid elections.<\/p>\n Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list<\/p>\n Wartime elections are forbidden under Ukrainian law, and Zelenskyy\u2019s term in office as the country\u2019s elected president expired last year.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m ready for elections, and moreover I ask\u2026 that the US help me, maybe together with European colleagues, to ensure the security of an election,\u201d Zelenskyy said in comments to reporters.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd then in the next 60-90 days, Ukraine will be ready to hold an election,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n In a Politico news article published earlier on Tuesday, Trump was quoted as saying: \u201cYou know, they [Ukraine] talk about a democracy, but it gets to a point where it\u2019s not a democracy any more.\u201d<\/p>\n Zelenskyy dismissed the suggestion that he was clinging to power as \u201ctotally inadequate\u201d.<\/p>\n He then said that he would ask parliament to prepare proposals for new legislation that could allow for elections during martial law.<\/p>\n Earlier this year, Ukraine\u2019s parliament overwhelmingly approved a resolution affirming the legitimacy of Zelenskyy\u2019s wartime stay<\/a> in office, asserting the constitutionality of deferring the presidential election while the country fights Russia\u2019s invasion.<\/p>\n