Zelenskyy denies election plan, insists on security guarantees for any vote

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has pushed back against media reports that he intends to announce dates for a presidential election and a referendum on a peace settlement with Russia. In remarks to Ukrainian journalists, Zelenskyy said he was hearing about such plans for the first time from the Financial Times, which cited Ukrainian and European officials involved in the discussions.

Security first, elections second

Zelenskyy reiterated his longstanding position that elections cannot be held under wartime conditions without comprehensive security guarantees. "We come to the elections when there are all the appropriate security guarantees," he stated. He emphasized that a ceasefire is an essential prerequisite for organizing any vote, describing the matter as fundamentally a security issue. The president noted that while some international partners have raised the election question, Kyiv itself has never initiated this discussion.

US pressure and the May 15 timeline

According to the Financial Times report, the Trump administration has pressed Ukraine to hold both presidential elections and a peace deal referendum by May 15, warning that failure to do so could jeopardize proposed US security guarantees. Zelenskyy confirmed that American officials have broached the topic of elections but declined to provide specifics. He stressed that Ukraine's delegation conveyed his firm position to Washington during recent talks and that Kyiv remains ready to work with any schedule proposed by its American counterparts—provided security conditions are met.

Referendum requires ceasefire

Addressing the prospect of a referendum on a potential peace agreement, Zelenskyy was unequivocal: "If we raise the issue of a referendum, there must be an understanding of a ceasefire for this." He drew a direct parallel between the structural demands of a referendum and those of an election, insisting that security is equally indispensable for both. The remarks come as Russia, Ukraine, and the US have held two rounds of trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi, with no breakthrough yet on ending Europe's deadliest conflict since World War II.