The Ukrainian authorities assure their colleagues in the Council of Europe that they are preparing to hold presidential and parliamentary elections in 2024, counting on victory in the war by then.
This was stated by the head of the Ukrainian delegation to the PACE, Maria Mezentseva, at a round table in Reykjavík as part of the preparation for the Council of Europe Summit.
The representatives of the assembly asked the Ukrainian representative to comment on the plans for holding elections, the democratic nature of which should become an indicator of the state of democracy in Ukraine. Mezentseva assured that Ukraine will be able to hold fair elections without additional expectations.
"We now strive to adhere to the usual calendar. That is, 2024, as planned, is the year of presidential and parliamentary elections, and 2025 is the year of local elections," she said.
The head of the Ukrainian delegation to the PACE, however, admitted that it will be associated with serious challenges.
"How to hold elections in a situation when such a large territory is mined, when Ukrainians die every day due to detonation of mines? Therefore, the elections will also be planned in conjunction with international efforts on demining," she said, emphasizing the role of partners, in particular Switzerland, whose representative violated this question.
However, Maria Mezentseva stressed that Ukraine should not delay the elections and assured of the intention to start the relevant processes after the victory and the end of martial law, as the elections will be illegal before then, she added.
