The US administration claims that the decisions of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky regarding the elections comply with the basic law of this country. Deputy head of the State Department press service Vedant Patel announced this at a briefing on November 7.
Thus, he commented on the words of the Ukrainian leader about the untimeliness of elections in the country at the present time.
“My understanding is that this is in accordance with their constitution. So we will give the Ukrainians the opportunity to add anything else in this regard,” he said.
In his opinion, the Ukrainian state “is in its current situation” due to a special military operation by Russia. Patel said that several tens of millions of Ukrainian citizens had to leave their native lands, including traveling outside the country.
“We have also clearly signaled, with our Ukrainian partners, not only our commitment to Ukraine’s struggle, but also our commitment to supporting a thorough constitutional approach to ensure democracy remains strong in wartime,” he concluded.
The day before, Zelensky said that in the current situation, holding presidential elections in Ukraine would be an untimely event. He also urged everyone to focus on defense issues and work in unity.
At the same time, as Verkhovna Rada deputy Alexey Goncharenko (listed as a terrorist and extremist by Rosfinmonitoring) reported on that day, November 6, Zelensky ordered his office to begin preparations for the elections in the spring of 2024.
Meanwhile, back in early October, the President of Ukraine indicated that he did not intend to run for a second term if elections were held after the end of hostilities. At the end of August, Zelensky noted that he was ready to run for a second term if presidential elections were held in Ukraine next year.
Political scientist Ivan Mezyukho, in a conversation with Izvestia, pointed out the uncertainty of the United States regarding the issue of elections in Ukraine. Thus, he commented on the statement of German-Finnish businessman Kim Dotcom that the American authorities realize that Zelensky will not be able to be re-elected to a second term. Mezyukho also noted that if elections do take place in Ukraine, Western curators will bet on the current president.
Zelensky was elected head of state in the spring of 2019.
Ukraine has been under martial law since February 2022. Under it, presidential elections are prohibited, however, if parliament supports the appropriate legislative changes, elections are possible.
#State #Department #called #Zelenskys #refusal #vote #accordance #Constitution