NEW: Trump Calls On Ukraine To Maintain Elections, Tackle Corruption Points
While speaking with reporters on Wednesday, President Donald Trump once again called on his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, to call elections and address corruption issues within the nation’s government.
“And I do say, you know, at what point, when do they have an election in Ukraine? That’s not casting dispersions on anybody, but they do have a massive corruption situation going on there,” Trump said when asked about the arduous peace talks between Ukraine and Russia.
“And they do say, you know, when are they — people are asking this question. When do they have an election? Are they going to have an election? Or are they going to just keep it going like this? So I think it’s time to get that war settled. And I think it’s a war that can be settled, but it takes two to tango.”
Ukraine’s most recent presidential election occurred on April 21, 2019, when Volodymyr Zelensky cruised to victory in a runoff election. Parliamentary elections were also held in July of that year.
No national elections have taken place since due to the imposition of martial law on February 24, 2022, immediately after Russia’s full-scale invasion, which legally prohibits elections under Ukraine’s constitution and separate wartime legislation.
The measure has been extended in 90-day increments by both Zelensky and parliament, both of whom have argued that holding elections would be impossible due to security risks.
WASHINGTON – Feb. 28, 2025: President Donald Trump welcomes Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to the White House to sign a deal granting the US access to Ukraine’s rare minerals.
Trump also spoke to ongoing corruption scandals in Ukraine, which have long plagued the nation’s government both before and after the 2014 revolution. Back in July, protests erupted in Ukraine after lawmakers passed a bill that will weaken two anti-corruption agencies.
The law significantly curtails the independence of Ukraine’s National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and the affiliated Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO), according to a report from Axios. Both bodies, which were designed to be autonomous, were established following the 2014 “Maidan Revolution” which led to the removal of then-President Viktor Yanukovych, a pro-Russia figure, and the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine’s Eastern provinces that ultimately led to the current war.
Leaders in the European Union and the United States had pushed for the establishment of such institutions in order to clean up Ukraine’s long-standing corruption issues. The issue took a backseat following the Russian invasion of wider Ukraine, though the issue has now been reignited as the current conflict slogs on through its third full year.
In addition, the nation has been gripped in high-profile corruption scandals regarding its energy sector, which led to the resignation of a key Zelensky ally last month.
🚨 BREAKING: President Trump just EXPOSED Ukraine’s “massive corruption” problem, says it’s time for elections
“They do have a MASSIVE corruption situation going on there. People are asking this.”
“When do they have an election?! Or are they just gonna keep it going like this?”… pic.twitter.com/L30rlT1gBc
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) December 10, 2025
While Zelensky has largely balked at the idea of calling elections in the immediate future throughout the conflict in wider Ukraine, he left the door open to the possibility while responding to the president’s comments.
“Look, I am ready for elections… Moreover, I am asking – and I am now declaring this openly – the United States of America to help me, maybe together with our European colleagues, to ensure security for the elections. And then, within the next 60–90 days, Ukraine will be ready to hold them,” Zelensky said during a question-and-answer session on Tuesday.
The Ukrainian leader rejected the notion that he is avoiding elections in order to maintain power as “completely unreasonable” before adding that he intends to discuss the prospect of elections with parliament.
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