Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Wednesday that his primary goal remains ending the Russian invasion, and he is “ready” to leave office once that is achieved.

“If we finish [the] war with [the] Russians, I’m ready not to go for the second term because it’s not my goal — elections,” Zelensky said. “I wanted very much in a very difficult period of time to be with my country, help my country. My goal is to finish the war,” Zelensky told Axios.

“During the cease-fire, I think security can give the possibility to have elections,” he said. “It can be so.”

Postponed elections

Zelensky, 47, was elected in April 2019 for a five-year term. Ukraine’s scheduled March 2024 elections have been postponed indefinitely under martial law due to the ongoing Russian invasion, prompting some

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