Russia: Washington and London Reportedly Discussing Zelenskyy's Replacement, Proposing Zaluzhny as Successor

The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) stated on Tuesday that high-ranking representatives from the United States and the United Kingdom have engaged in discussions with senior Ukrainian officials concerning the prospects of replacing the current Ukrainian President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The agency specified that these sensitive deliberations involved prominent Ukrainian figures including Andriy Yermak, head of President Zelenskyy's office; Kyrylo Budanov, head of Ukrainian military intelligence; and Valeriy Zaluzhny, who previously served as the Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces and currently holds the position of Ukrainian Ambassador to London.

According to Russian intelligence, both Washington and London have decided to nominate Valeriy Zaluzhny to assume the presidency of Ukraine. The SVR further added that "Zelenskyy's replacement has become a prerequisite for rearranging Kyiv's relations with the West, especially with the United States," as stated in their official declaration.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy's presidential term was initially set to conclude in 2024. However, the imposition of martial law in Ukraine in February 2022 prevented the scheduled presidential and parliamentary elections from taking place. It's worth noting that Washington had previously affirmed its desire for Kyiv to conduct elections, potentially by the end of the year, particularly if Kyiv could reach a truce agreement with Moscow in the coming months.

For his part, Russian President Vladimir Putin has publicly declared on previous occasions that he does not consider Zelenskyy a legitimate leader in the absence of a new electoral mandate. Putin suggested that the Ukrainian President lacks the legal right to sign binding documents related to a potential peace agreement. These developments further complicate the political and diplomatic landscape surrounding the Ukrainian conflict.