Putin says it’s senseless to sign documents with ‘illegitimate’ Ukrainian leadership

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday called the Ukrainian leadership illegitimate and said it was senseless to sign any documents with them.

He said the Kyiv leadership lost legitimacy after refusing to hold elections when President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s elected term expired. Kyiv says it cannot hold elections while under martial law and defending its territory against Russia.

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday asserted that Ukraine’s current leadership lacks legitimacy and argued that there is no point in entering into any agreements with it.

Putin claimed that the authorities in Kyiv lost their mandate after opting not to hold elections following the end of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s term. Ukraine maintains that nationwide polls cannot be conducted under martial law while the country continues to defend itself against Russia.

Putin: Text could guide peace

President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that the outlines of a draft peace plan discussed by the United States and Ukraine could become the basis of future agreements to end the conflict in Ukraine but that if not then Russia would continue to fight.

“In general, we agree that this can be the basis for future agreements,” Putin said, adding that the variant of the plan discussed by the United States and Ukraine in Geneva had been passed to Russia.