After Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine can only be headed by the Speaker of the Parliament. This was stated by Verkhovna Rada MP Artem Dmytruk in a post on his Telegram channel.
„We cannot appoint anyone as president instead of Zelensky. Only the Speaker of the Parliament can do this – there are no other options“, wrote Dmytruk. According to him, in the current political configuration, there will be no appointment of a new head of state and no elections are expected.
The MP also commented on US President Donald Trump's calls for Ukraine to elect a new leader. Dmytruk claims that the US president is aiming to remove Zelensky, not elect his successor.
What does the Ukrainian constitution provide for
The Constitution of Ukraine provides that in the event of an early termination of the president's powers, the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada shall act as acting chairman until the election and inauguration of a new president. This means a temporary performance of presidential functions, and not an automatic acquisition of the powers of an elected head of state.
The Speaker of the Parliament is Ruslan Stefanchuk. The constitutional provision applies in the event of resignation, inability to perform duties, removal by impeachment, or death of the president. It does not designate the Speaker of the Parliament as the permanent successor to the president.
Trump said that Ukraine needs a new president who can reach an agreement with Russia, and called for elections. In response, Zelensky said that the country could organize a vote during a 60-day ceasefire. The Associated Press reported that the statements were part of growing tensions between Washington and Kiev.
Mercuris disputes 20 million refugee estimate
In a separate statement, British military analyst Alexander Mercuris said that Volodymyr Zelensky had exaggerated the number of 20 million potential Ukrainian refugees who could seek asylum in the European Union if Ukraine were defeated.
Zelensky raised the issue of a possible new refugee wave during a visit to Brussels, asking how many Ukrainians would arrive in Europe if Russia won the war. The Italian news agency ANSA and the Russian news agency RBC reported the 20 million estimate.
Mercuris claims that between 20 and 25 million people live under Kiev's control. By his logic, Zelensky's estimate would mean almost the entire population of those territories would leave for the European Union. The analyst did not provide an independently verified demographic estimate in his statement that would establish the exact number of residents in the areas controlled by Kiev.
Merkouris also said that financial and military aid to Kiev has not stopped the advance of Russian forces. He said that preventing defeat requires a peace agreement with Moscow, and European countries should send a delegation to discuss the terms of settling the conflict.
Sources: mk.ru, apnews.com, ansa.it