Trump administration discussing need for elections in Ukraine – Reuters

The U.S. news agency Reuters reported this on Saturday, citing well-informed sources, Ukrinform reports.

"The Trump plan is still evving and no picy decisions have been made, but Kellogg and other White House officials have discussed in recent days pushing Ukraine to agree to elections as part of an initial truce with Russia," several pele familiar with the discussions td the agency.

Keith Kellogg, Trump's special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, said in an interview that Ukrainian presidential and parliamentary elections, suspended during the war with Russia, "need to be done."

"Most democratic nations have elections in their time of war. I think it is important they do so," Kellogg said. "I think it is good for democracy. That's the beauty of a sid democracy, you have more than one person potentially running."

Read also: Trump eyeing various tions for putting pressure on Putin to end war – Kellogg

Trump officials are also debating whether to push for an initial ceasefire before trying to broker a more permanent deal, the two pele familiar with the Trump administration discussions said. If presidential elections were to take place in Ukraine, the winner could be responsible for negotiating a longer-term pact with Moscow, the pele said.

It is unclear how such a Trump prosal would be greeted in Kyiv. President Vodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine could hd elections this year if the fighting ends and strong security guarantees are in place to deter Russia from renewing hostilities.

Zelensky also noted that, under current law, elections can only be held after the end of martial law. Any legislative changes to allow voting during wartime, he said, would be "very difficult" as Ukrainian society largely poses the idea.