The Trump administration’s push for Ukraine to hold elections once a ceasefire is agreed upon would be a “failed plan” without additional guarantees, according to an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
President Donald Trump tasked Keith Kellogg to negotiate an end to Russia’s war in Ukraine, but the two have not provided many details about how they intend to accomplish ending what has been the deadliest war fought in Europe since World War II.
Zelensky’s five-year term was supposed to end last year, but presidential and parliamentary polls are not allowed to be held under martial law in Ukraine, which it imposed in February 2022, when Russia’s full-scale invasion began.
“It needs to be done,” he told Reuters, which reported that U.S. officials are considering whether getting Ukraine to agree to elections could be a part of an initial ceasefire with Russia.
“Most democratic nations have elections in their time of war. I think it is important they do so,” Kellogg added. “I think it is good for democracy. That’s the beauty of a solid democracy. You have more than one person potentially running.”
Dmytro Lytvyn, Zelensky’s communications adviser, responded to Kellogg’s comments on X.
“It’s hard to fully assess his position. But if his plan is just a ceasefire and elections, it is a failed plan – Putin won’t be intimidated by just those two things,” he said. “Moscow keeps increasing missile and ammunition production, finding new ways to bypass sanctions, and making money from oil. And it’s clear that all these weapons are not being built to respect democratic neighbors. Russia’s military alliance with North Korea is clearly not about respecting a ceasefire.”
Biden administration officials also urged Ukraine to hold elections, according to the outlet.
Kellogg, a retired Army lieutenant general, recently said in a Fox News interview that he believes “both sides will give a little bit” and that Zelensky “has already indicated he will soften his position on land,” while Russian leader Vladimir Putin “is going to have to soften his positions as well.”
Trump repeatedly said in the lead-up to the election that he would end the war within 24 hours, but has seemingly made little headway in his first two weeks in office.
When asked how long it could take for a ceasefire agreement to come to fruition, Kellogg said, “I would like to say it’s months, but it’s not years.”
The Trump administration has not followed the Biden administration’s strategy of providing weapons to Ukraine “for as long as it takes” and instead wants to see the war come to an end.
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER
Russian forces are continuing their aerial assault in Ukraine. In the latest attack over the weekend, a residential building in Poltava was hit, killing three people and wounding 10. Six others were wounded in attacks in Zaporizhzhia, Odesa, Sumy, Kharkiv, Khmelnytskyi, and Kyiv.
Zelensky asked the international community to provide Ukraine with more air defense systems, pleading that “every air defense system, every interceptor missile, means a life saved.”