According to Kiev International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) rating of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky rose to 57 % in early February - contradicting US President Donald Trump's claim that Zelensky has only minimal support among the population.
Speaking at Mar-a-Lago after his US delegation ended talks with Russia, Trump said Ukraine needs to hold elections because the Ukrainian leader reportedly has low approval ratings.
"We have a situation where there have been no elections in Ukraine, where we have martial law, where the leader in Ukraine, I hate to say it, but he's at 4 % rating," Trump said.
"I would say that, you know, if they want to sit at the table, shouldn't people in Ukraine say something like, 'You know, it's been a long time since we had elections. That's not a Russian thing, that's something that comes from me and that comes from many other countries." he continued.
"If someone wants to replace me now, it won't be possible." Zelensky commented on the results of an opinion poll published on Wednesday.
"The disinformation about the 4 % support is coming from Russia. We understand and have evidence that these numbers are being discussed between the US and Russia."
"Unfortunately, President Trump, with all due respect to him as a leader of a nation we hold in high regard ... lives in this disinformation space," He added.
President and authorities considered legitimate
The latest KIIS poll, which showed Zelensky with 57% support, was conducted before Trump's first phone call with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin set the stage for US-Russian talks in Saudi Arabia.
In addition, Zelensky's support improved from 52 % in December 2024 to 57 % in early February.
By comparison, according to the latest CBS News/YouGov poll as of early February, 53 % US citizens approve of Trump's overall performance in office so far.
Deputy Director of KIIS Anton Khrushchevsky on the latest assessment, he said that Zelensky maintains a relatively high level of trust in society and even more so maintains his legitimacy.
"If some international partners and allies are concerned about the legitimacy of the president in the context of possible peace talks and consider it appropriate to insist on elections, then from the point of view of the Ukrainian people themselves there are no problems with this," Hrushevsky said.
"The current president and the authorities are perfectly legitimate to conduct difficult negotiations and elections should be held only after the war is over and Ukraine at least has reliable security guarantees," He added.
Presidential elections were scheduled for March or April 2024 in Ukraine to conclude Zelensky's first five-year term. The vote was postponed because the country's constitution does not allow elections under martial law, which was declared on 24 February 2022, the day Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, the Ukrainian president said he was open to discussing elections in Ukraine, something his countrymen do not want to see because of fears that lifting martial law could weaken the country's defences.
"My focus is on the survival of our country. I've been doing that throughout my tenure," He said.
"I am ready to talk about elections, but the Ukrainians absolutely do not want it because they are afraid that otherwise we will lose martial law, our soldiers will return home and Putin will occupy our entire territory. This will happen. Because now we are mobilized. Now we are one organism, and so we are one country." He concluded.
euronews/ gnews.cz - RoZ
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