Zelensky Offers to Hold Elections If Russian President Vladimir Putin Agrees to a 60-Day Ceasefire
After Donald Trump said it was time for Ukraine to get a new president, Zelensky said he would organise elections if Vladimir Putin agreed to 60 days of total ceasefire.
Appearing on ABC's "This Week" on 11 October, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said: give us two months, 60 days of total ceasefire, and Ukraine will organise elections. The message was addressed to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The offer came after US President Donald Trump told reporters at the White House that it was time for Ukraine to get a new president. Zelensky answered that it is up to Ukrainians to choose their leader, and noted that Putin would also like to change who leads Ukraine. Ukraine's elections have been suspended since the 2022 Russian invasion.
On the streets of Kyiv, several residents expressed anger at Trump's suggestion that Ukraine should find a new leader willing to make a deal with Putin. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen publicly backed Zelensky's call for a ceasefire that would protect global food supplies and energy infrastructure in Ukraine and Russia.
Russia has not accepted a 60-day ceasefire in the reports reviewed for this article.