Kyiv, Oct 19: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he stands ready to run in presidential elections if a vote is held before the conflict with Russia ends, the Ukrinform news agency reported Monday. “If it takes place during the war, of course, it is my duty, because I must defend my country from the beginning until the end of the war,” Zelensky said. Ukrainian law requires elections to be held at least six months after the end of hostilities, Zelensky said, noting that he was ready to explore ways for holding a vote during the conflict if Russia agreed to a 60-day ceasefire, Xinhua News Agency reported.
Zelensky explained that the 60-day preparation period would allow Ukraine to amend its election legislation and arrange the necessary security infrastructure. Ukraine held the last presidential elections in 2019. In 2022, martial law was imposed in the country amid the conflict with Russia, prohibiting elections for security concerns.
Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump called on Ukraine to hold a presidential election. Earlier, Zelensky said that the United States temporarily suspended crucial intelligence sharing with Ukraine for three days, leaving its forces without American warnings of Russian ballistic missile attacks during that period.
In an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press, Zelensky also said restrictions on satellite communications used by Ukrainian forces had not been fully lifted, raising fresh questions about Washington’s military and intelligence support for Kyiv. The Ukrainian leader said the intelligence interruption affected information that only the United States could provide, particularly advance warnings of ballistic missile strikes. “We didn’t see attacks of Russia using ballistic missiles,” Zelensky said.
He said Ukraine continued receiving intelligence from European governments and other international partners, but their capabilities could not fully replace American systems. “We have dozens of countries who help. But only United States has this unique intelligence to say, to tell us, to tell our side when Russia uses ballistic missiles,” he said.
IANS