Ukraine ready for elections only under full ceasefire negotiated by U.S. — Zelenskyy

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated following the meeting of the “Coalition of the Willing” that Ukraine is ready to hold elections, but this is possible only under the condition of a full ceasefire, which the United States must negotiate directly with Russia.

“America can help with this [ensuring conditions for elections – Ed.] the most. If there is a need for elections now, there must be a ceasefire – at least during the election process and during voting. This is something that must be discussed. Honestly, we think here in Ukraine that America should speak to the Russian side about this,” Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed.

During an online meeting with international partners, the Head of State outlined the vision for future security arrangements. According to the President, the Ukrainian side is working on a framework document intended to serve as the basis for Ukraine’s security.

“We’re working on a framework document. It must be strong enough to truly work. We believe this document should be approved by the U.S. Congress – this would mean real, solid, legally binding security guarantees for our country. And they must actually be implemented,” Zelenskyy said.

The President emphasized that an effective security guarantees model is impossible without Europe and all other members of the Coalition of the Willing – from Canada to Japan to Australia and New Zealand. He thanked all partners for their support of Ukraine.

The President also announced that the day before, Ukraine handed over an updated version of this framework document to the American team. It contains 20 key points which, according to Zelenskyy, can become the foundation for the entire security architecture.

Additionally, the President stressed the importance of expanding the PURL program. Zelenskyy thanked partners for strengthening air defense, which allows for the protection of the energy system from Russian attacks, and once again called on allies to accelerate the implementation of the mechanism for using frozen Russian assets for the benefit of Ukraine.

In February this year, over 130 leading civil society organisations called on international partners to focus on security support for Ukraine rather than pushing for wartime elections, stressing that democracy requires even stronger protection during wartime when the cost of mistakes is extremely high.