For Putin, "Zelensky isn't legitimate to negotiate for Ukraine"
Russian President, Vladimir Putin, said today that Moscow would sign peace agreements only with the legitimate Ukrainian authorities, something he denied to Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelensky, and members of his government.
"Where's the legitimacy of the Ukrainian regime? I repeat once again: the Constitution of Ukraine doesn't provide for the possibility of extending the president's term, even under martial law," Putin said at his year-end press conference, broadcast live on television.
The Kremlin leader was referring to the fact that Zelensky was elected president of Ukraine in May 2019 for a five-year term. "There's only one body of power, a representative body of power, the Council, that is, the Rada, whose powers can be expanded without elections, as martial law allows," he explained.
Vladimir Putin stressed that the structure of the Ukrainian state is such that the heads of ministries and regions are appointed by the president, and if the president doesn't have legitimacy, "all others lose it too".
(MH with AmBar/Source: Agency/Photo: DPA/Anadolu/Kremlin Press Office)