Donald Trump is demanding Volodymyr Zelensky hold elections that could oust him from office as the price of peace.
His comments came after Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, and Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, met in Saudi Arabia for the first time to discuss terms to bring an end to the war in Ukraine.
The proposal raises concerns that Russia will use the ballot to oust Ukraine’s wartime leader from office and install a pro-Putin candidate who would agree to peace terms favourable to Moscow.
Mr Trump said the demand for a Ukrainian presidential election “came from me”.
“We have a situation where we haven’t had elections in Ukraine, where we have martial law, essentially martial law in Ukraine, where the leader in Ukraine, I mean, I hate to say it, but he’s down at 4 per cent approval rating, and where a country has been blown to smithereens...
“If Ukraine wants a seat at the table, wouldn’t the people have to say it has been a long time since they had an elec
His comments came after Sergei Lavrov, the Russian foreign minister, and Marco Rubio, the US secretary of state, met in Saudi Arabia for the first time to discuss terms to bring an end to the war in Ukraine.
The proposal raises concerns that Russia will use the ballot to oust Ukraine’s wartime leader from office and install a pro-Putin candidate who would agree to peace terms favourable to Moscow.
Mr Trump said the demand for a Ukrainian presidential election “came from me”.
“We have a situation where we haven’t had elections in Ukraine, where we have martial law, essentially martial law in Ukraine, where the leader in Ukraine, I mean, I hate to say it, but he’s down at 4 per cent approval rating, and where a country has been blown to smithereens...
“If Ukraine wants a seat at the table, wouldn’t the people have to say it has been a long time since they had an elec
23 days ago
