Ukraine's presidential and parliamentary elections, which have been suspended amid the conflict with Russia, "need to be held," Keith Kellogg, US President Donald Trump's special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, said in an interview with Reuters.
"Most democratic countries have elections in wartime. I think it's important that they do. I think it's good for democracy, you have more than one person who can run for office," said Mr. Kellogg.
President Donald Trump and Kellogg have both said they are developing a plan to broker a deal in the first few months of their administration to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict. But there have been few details about the strategy for ending the conflict, or when it will be announced.
President Donald Trump’s plan is still in development and no policy decisions have been made, but Kellogg and other U.S. officials have discussed in recent days pushing Ukraine to agree to elections as part of an initial cease-fire with Russia, according to two people familiar with the matter.
President Donald Trump’s officials are also debating whether to push for an initial ceasefire before trying to broker a longer-term deal. If Ukraine’s presidential election takes place, the winner could be charged with negotiating a longer-term pact with Russia.
It is unclear how such a proposal from President Donald Trump would be received in Ukraine. President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine could hold elections this year if fighting ends and strong security guarantees are provided to prevent Russia from resuming hostilities.
President Zelensky's five-year term was supposed to end in 2024 but presidential and parliamentary elections cannot be held, as Ukraine has been under martial law since February 2022.
Washington has raised the issue of elections with senior officials of President Zelensky in 2023 and 2024, but Kiev officials have objected.
Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov refused to answer when asked about the US urging Ukraine to hold elections. Meanwhile, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov stated that there had been no direct contact with the administration of President Donald Trump.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has publicly stated that he does not think President Zelensky is a legitimate leader without a new election term and that the Ukrainian president has no legal right to sign binding documents related to a potential peace deal.
However, according to the Russian leader, Mr. Zelensky can participate in the negotiations in the meantime but must first cancel the 2022 decree he signed banning negotiations with Russia while Mr. Putin is in power.
