Volodymyr Zelensky’s presidential term expired on May 20th (www.economist.com)

submitted 6 months ago by yogthos@lemmy.ml to c/worldnews@lemmy.ml

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[-] Nougat@fedia.io 30 points 6 months ago

Right before the paywall in this very article:

Ukraine’s constitution is confusing. Article 103 states that the president is elected for a five-year term; but Article 108 says that he or she exercises power until a new president is inaugurated. A longstanding law (though not a constitutional provision) says that elections cannot be held when martial law is in force, as it has been in Ukraine since Russia began its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

Having read about this before, I can say that The Economist is wrong. It is a constitutional provision in Ukraine.

[-] Kraven_the_Hunter@lemmy.dbzer0.com 23 points 6 months ago

There may be extenuating circumstances..

[-] yogthos@lemmy.ml 10 points 6 months ago

Last I checked, Russia held elections, but I guess cancelling the elections aligns closer with western values.

[-] Sebbe@lemmy.sebbem.se 34 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

The Russian election was a joke and you know it.
Russia is currently not being invaded so there is no reason to cancel elections there.
Canceling elections does generally not align with "western" democratic values.

[-] yogthos@lemmy.ml 11 points 6 months ago

No, I don't know that. Even western media admits that Putin has over 80% support. Meanwhile, using a war as an excuse for a regime holding on to power without a mandate is not democracy. If people of Ukraine wanted to fight the invasion then they'd vote Zelensky back in. It's that simple.

[-] Sebbe@lemmy.sebbem.se 21 points 6 months ago

No, "western" media reports that Putin got more than 80% of the votes in an election that was obviously rigged. Holding democratic elections is anything but simple and in a country fighting an invasion it's practically impossible.

[-] yogthos@lemmy.ml 8 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

They now tend to see the weakness of the Russian anti-war movement as a mark of complicity among the Russian public, and they are dismayed by Putin’s approval rating: independent pollsters have measured it at over 80% support more than two years into the invasion. Even President Volodymyr Zelensky and his team have all but given up on their hopes of a popular backlash in Russia against the war. They are no longer inclined to believe in the existence of what they often call “Good Russians.”

The Putler puppets at The Time seem to be reporting this, but do go on. 🤡

Meanwhile, you'll have to explain to us all why holding democratic elections in a country fighting an invasion is practically impossible. Presumably, if the government had popular support for fighting, then it would win by a landslide. The only thing that makes impossible is the fact that people don't actually want to fight, and the government is a western puppet regime that's sacrificing people of Ukraine to serve western interests. This is why they literally kidnap people off the street, which is some more ruzzian propaganda reported by NYT https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/15/world/europe/ukraine-military-recruitment.html

[-] andrew_bidlaw@sh.itjust.works 6 points 6 months ago

It's so funny to read ya from Russia. The lack of research is showing.

[-] yogthos@lemmy.ml 6 points 6 months ago

profile picture checks out

[-] andrew_bidlaw@sh.itjust.works 4 points 6 months ago

It compliments my style, not my point. I've explicitly chosen that so some people can embarass themselves with taking a low hanging fruit (:

[-] yogthos@lemmy.ml 5 points 6 months ago

Nah, it matches your rhetoric perfectly. The only part embarrassing here is that you're oblivious to that fact. (:

[-] andrew_bidlaw@sh.itjust.works 1 points 6 months ago

That's, like, your opinion, manperson. But what's objectively true: putting a smile after the dot is indefensible in any court from Dubai to Massachusets. I believe, even Hitler condemned it's use on the battlefield after being exposed to that in WW1.

[-] yogthos@lemmy.ml 4 points 6 months ago

whatever helps feel good about yourself I suppose

[-] andrew_bidlaw@sh.itjust.works 1 points 6 months ago

Glad we both are.

[-] FaceDeer@fedia.io 24 points 6 months ago

20% of Ukraine is currently occupied by a hostile foreign power. 0% of Russia is occupied.

Also, Russian elections give whatever results Putin wants, so the status of the electorate doesn't really matter in the first place there.

[-] yogthos@lemmy.ml 8 points 6 months ago

Would that be the same 20% of Ukraine that was in civil war with the rest of Ukraine after the coup in 2014 by any chance? Meanwhile, even western media admits that Putin has massive popular support https://time.com/6977473/putin-opposition-movement-unity/

[-] davel@lemmy.ml 16 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

They also banned or nationalized many media outlets, censor media in general, and suspended eleven political parties during his term, which eventually became permanent bans.

Al Jazeera, Mar. 2022: Why did Ukraine suspend 11 ‘pro-Russia’ parties?

Europe is no bastion for frozen peaches, either. AP, Mar. 2024: EU bans 4 more Russian media outlets from broadcasting in the bloc, citing disinformation

[-] yogthos@lemmy.ml 15 points 6 months ago

Wild how upset people get when you point out basic facts of the situation.

[-] pelikan@lemmy.dbzer0.com 7 points 6 months ago* (last edited 6 months ago)

Noone in US or EU would care about expiration of Zelensky’s presidential term as long as he's reliable supplier of cannon fodder for proxy NATO-Russia war. Roosevelt's words on Somoza ("he may be a son of a bitch, but he's our son of a bitch') would apply here as well.