Zelenskyy warns wartime elections risk splitting Ukraine
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has rejected calls for wartime elections, saying the move could fracture the country as Russia stockpiles ballistic missiles. He also detailed Ukraine's urgent need for air defence ahead of winter.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy has responded for the first time to calls from sacked former defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov to hold elections in Ukraine, warning that such a step during wartime risks splitting the nation. Speaking at a briefing with selected journalists on Saturday, details of which emerged Sunday, the Ukrainian president argued the idea was impractical while Russia shows no interest in a ceasefire.
Zelenskyy said elections at this stage would amount to a "tsunami" that could divide the state, stressing that his priority remains ending the war and preserving Ukraine's independence rather than staging a vote under current conditions.
Elections in Ukraine have been suspended since martial law was declared at the start of Russia's full-scale invasion. Zelenskyy's five-year term expired in May 2024, though there had been little appetite domestically for a wartime contest until Fedorov, dismissed a month earlier, publicly demanded fresh elections — the most direct challenge to Zelenskyy's authority since the invasion began.
Zelenskyy said he would support elections if Ukraine's allies established specific conditions to guarantee they could be held safely and democratically, including participation by soldiers and citizens who fled abroad, and a vote free from strikes and shelling. He said Fedorov had been removed because he overstepped into military functions and had turned down four alternative government posts.
Russian missile stockpiles and air defence needs
According to Zelenskyy, Russia holds a stockpile of 600-630 ballistic missiles and is producing just over 100 more per month, with maximum annual capacity at 1,300. These missiles have been used against infrastructure, warehouses and the capital, raising civilian casualties, while Ukraine faces a shortage of US-made Patriot interceptors.
The president said he sought 300 Patriot missiles for the winter package, though the air force had requested 360. He has secured agreements with France for at least one SAMP/T system and with Germany for roughly 600 PAC-2 and PAC-3 interceptors in 2027-28, and hopes the US will supply a portion of its own stockpiles.
Members of the so-called coalition of the willing will meet Monday to discuss increasing pressure on Moscow. Zelenskyy expressed confidence Russia would fail to capture the remainder of Donetsk province, including Kramatorsk and Sloviansk, but warned Moscow may attempt to mobilise another 300,000 soldiers after September's parliamentary elections.
