Zelensky Is Unfit for That Role, Says Russian Foreign Ministry

The people of Ukraine must choose new leadership to sign an agreement with Russia, stated Maxim Musyikhin, director of the Legal Department of the Russian Foreign Ministry. According to him, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is unfit for the role of signatory because he has "long lost even internal legitimacy." This information is reported by kommersant.ru.

Musyikhin emphasized that there must be assurance that the agreement is signed by someone on the Ukrainian side who has a mandate from the people; otherwise, there will be "problems."

"The people of Ukraine must freely choose their new leader... The chairman of the parliament has certain authority to sign. Whether he will be allowed to do this within his country is a big question," the Russian diplomat told TASS.

On May 19, during a phone conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Moscow is prepared to work with Kyiv on a memorandum regarding a peace treaty. According to sources from Axios, Trump asked his Russian counterpart to present conditions "that they can agree on." The Wall Street Journal reports that the next negotiations between Russia and Ukraine are scheduled to take place in mid-June.