Posted on 05/24/2024 8:59:28 AM PDT by marshmallow
Volodymyr Zelenesky's constitutionally-mandated term as Ukraine's president expired on May 21. The leader canceled elections planned for March or April last November, claiming it was "utterly irresponsible" to discuss such matters amid the ongoing conflict with Russia.
President Zelensky's legitimacy has expired, and Russia will proceed from this fact, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said.
"Of course, we are aware that the legitimacy of the current head of state [of Ukraine] has ended," Putin said at a press conference in Minsk on Friday after talks with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.
Putin recommended anyone looking for answers regarding Zelensky's legal status to look to the Ukrainian Constitution - which does not authorize the artificial extension of his presidential term under the pretext of martial law.
Lukashenko echoed Putin's assessment, saying that "there is no legal integrity, and cannot be any legal integrity" on this question.
"All the same, I believe that neither the current president nor the future one can resolve the big issues facing the state of Ukraine and the people of Ukraine. These issues will not be resolved by presidents. You know who will decide them. A lot has already been decided overseas, and what hasn't, will be decided later," Lukashenko said.
The Belarusian president added that there were plenty of people in Ukraine, both in the military and among civilians, who would like to lead the country, and "in a new way, [either] toward war or against war."
A defiant Zelensky has rejected questions on his legitimacy from his critics in Ukraine, and from Kiev's Western 'partners'. "My five-year term is not over yet. It is continuing due to martial law," Zelensky told Reuters on Tuesday.
Ukrainian parliament speaker Ruslan Stefanchuk warned Wednesday that Kiev would consider anyone who doubts Zelensky's legitimacy "enemies of Ukraine" and "political bottom-feeders."
(Excerpt) Read more at sputnikglobe.com ...
Maybe so, but it’s been a long time and I suspect Putin’s ‘right on this. It’s not like some ‘uprising’ just happened two months ago. This war has been going on for years.
The US was involved in a war on terror after 9/11 but we didn’t suspend elections. Not only should there be a vote on who’s President in Ukraine, there should be a vote on what the people want to do about the war situation.
Ukraine needs help! Time for all Zeepers to fly over there and join the Uke Army! The future of the entire world is at stake!! If they are too old to fight the Ukes would be happy to let them work in field hospitals. Join now!!
Say what you wish, because the man didn’t cut and run your buddy Putin and Imperial Ruzzia have lost about 500,000 soldiers as of this month.
500,000 Russian families grieving their losses.
All so Putin can make the USSR a superpower again.
Who says anyone over there is my buddy?
Neither Zelensky or Putin are my buddy, and I’d just as soon watch them both in a cage match and have them leave the rest of us alone.
And I see you’re neglecting to mention the catastrophic Ukrainian casualties.
“And I see you’re neglecting to mention the catastrophic Ukrainian casualties.”
That wasn’t the topic but since you brought it up I do look forward to Putin being arrested and prosecuted for his war crimes.
I hope he dies the same way Saddam Hussein did.
“That wasn’t the topic”
Wait... didn’t you say... :
“Ruzzia have lost about 500,000 soldiers as of this month.
500,000 Russian families grieving their losses.”
Why yes, YES you did!
Try again Meg.
So that’s what you do all day, try to guess if FReepers you don’t like are using multiple accounts?
Um, okay. 🙄
No, I laugh at people who rush to send US Taxpayer money to people who aren’t valid recipients of it.
“Horrible for leading the defense of his country against an utterly unjustified invasion? Please.”
You would have loved Hitler and Stalin!
Yet Putin recognizes Mahmood Abbas as the legitimate leader of “Palestine” - even though his only elected term ended in 2008.
How come we're allowed to invade sovereign nations and kill their leaders for specious reasons and even portray it as some sort of ethical victory, but Putin must die? Do Bush and Cheney get to face the firing squad, too?
If you're cheering the death of Saddam, you're cheering the deaths and displacement of hundreds of thousands of Iraqi Christians, the trashing of one of the oldest Christian communities on the planet and the facilitation of Islamic conquest. Over 4K Americans died to turn Iraq into an Islamic republic. There were over a million Christians in Iraq before we intervened.
You good with that? I bet you are.
You know who else cheered the death of Saddam? The Iranians.
Putin is unlikely to face justice in a courtroom.
He is however very likely to die from two .17 caliber bullets to the back of his skull when he’s not expecting it. Which is fitting since he supposedly did this kind of thing when he was full time KGB.
A $100 billion could have sealed our border...
Your unwillingness to discuss the questions I posed about America’s own invasive tendencies (e.g. Iraq) is noted.
The last two years fought with our money and backing, will have no appreciable difference in outcome than a negotiated settlement years ago, only a lot fewer dead Ukrainian men, fewer dead Russians (I do not consider the death of thousands of conscripted Russians to be good thing), and a bunch of broken infrastructure and used up armaments that will cost $$$ to replace.
I understand the initial resistance might be used to send the Russians signals to not go farther. Right now we and the Ukrainians are not getting anything for the lives and treasure spent. The last 15 years in Afghanistan were a waste for us.
I don’t think of Zelensky as being a heroic freedom fighter. I thik of him more as a Pickett’s Charge kind of guy.
That would have been a better use of our money.
I would rather let Russia and Ukraine settle their own matters, because I don’t want to “own” teh Ukraine problem,and the Europeans who should have more of an interest in the outcome seem to happy to let the U.S. and Ukrainian fodder do the heavy lifting for a few feet of Maginot line.
Don’t overlook the time given to NATO to wake up and readjust to Russia imperialistic impulses to renew their empire, to make dramatic changes in weapons manufacturing, to replace their energy dependency, to start plans for military drafts, to refresh old military stocks, increase budgets, learn about changes in modern warfare, see the destruction of important Russian weapon capabilities and for new member countries to join, for more conservative governments to be elected, for new cooperation and a shift in momentum for NATO’s unity and focus, and almost all of this also applies to our Pacific allies as well.
Europe hasn’t just been passively watching this war, they have been very actively reacting to it.
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