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Ukraine’s president faces a series of crises testing his ability to lead an increasingly exhausted nation for nearly four years amid a devastating full-scale invasion. Russia,
For more than a week, Volodymyr Zelensky has struggled to contain the fallout from a $100 million corruption scandal that has implicated top officials and other associates. Pressure has increased on Zelensky United States of America He introduced a proposal to Russia that would require major concessions from Ukraine to end the war – and seemingly some concessions from Russia.
All this is happening as Russia makes slow but steady advances along parts of the 1,000-kilometre (620-mile) front line and continues to bomb Ukraine’s power plants, causing severe power shortages as the cold weather sets in.
Here are five things to know about the mounting pressures facing Zelensky:
facing rebellion
Zelensky is facing a rebellion from lawmakers in his own party as the country’s corruption watchdogs revealed that $100 million was embezzled from the energy sector through bribes paid by contractors.
After investigators publicized their findings, Zelensky fired two top officials and imposed sanctions on close associates. An associate of Zelensky implicated in the scheme, Timur Mindich, has reportedly fled the country. Mindich is a partner in a media production company, which Zelensky co-owned before becoming president.
Some Ukrainian lawmakers and activists are calling on the president to fire his powerful chief of staff, Andriy Yermak.
Neither Zelensky nor Yermak have been accused of wrongdoing by investigators. But because Yermak is widely believed to decide key government appointments and to have influence over top political affairs, lawmakers believe he should take responsibility as a way to help restore public confidence.
The Zelensky-led Servant of the People party won two-thirds of the parliamentary seats in 2019. But some politicians have warned that if Zelensky does not break with Yermak he could lose his parliamentary majority, or face division in his party.
Mykola Davidiuk, an independent political expert, said many of Zelensky’s political allies feel something has to change, even if they have not gone public with their concerns. One of the main criticisms of Zelensky’s government, Davidiuk said, is that too much power is concentrated in the hands of Yermak and his advisers.
“Zelensky’s management style is not working,” he said.
How decisively Zelensky responds to the corruption scandal could determine whether the outcome will damage Ukraine’s standing with allies, Davidiuk said.
Zelensky’s grip on power is not in danger
Russia’s invasion led to martial law being imposed in Ukraine, postponing presidential and parliamentary elections indefinitely.
So even if Zelensky’s grip on parliament weakens and his popularity declines, he is highly unlikely to step down while the war continues – unless he resigns voluntarily.
The presidential term in Ukraine is typically five years and before the war, the next election was scheduled for spring 2024.
The growing political headwinds facing Zelensky could challenge his ability to push any potential peace deal negotiated with Russia through parliament. Political analysts say that if he had to run for office again after the war, Yermak still being in the picture could hurt his chances.
A former general is seen as a rival, but denies political aspirations
No elected Ukrainian opposition leader poses any potential threat to Zelensky.
A potential challenger could be Ukraine’s former army chief of staff, Valery Zaluzhny, who oversaw several successful counter-attacks in the first year of the war and was dismissed by the Ukrainian president in late 2023.
Zaluzny now serves as Ukraine’s ambassador to the UK.
Zaluzhny denies any intention of entering politics, but polls in Ukraine show him theoretically competitive with Zelensky, leading to speculation that he could be persuaded to run in the next election.
US and Russia prepare plan to end war in Ukraine
US and Russia have drawn up a plan aimed at ending the war in Ukraine that demands major concessions KyivThat includes meeting some of the demands, according to a person briefed on the plan. kremlin This has happened repeatedly since the invasion in early 2022.
The plan partly calls for Ukraine to cede territory to Russia and give up some weapons, according to the person, who was not authorized to comment publicly on the plan. This would also include withdrawal of some significant US military aid.
As part of the proposal, Russia would be given effective control of the entire eastern Donbass region – an area Moscow has long sought – even though Ukraine still controls parts of it.
Zelensky had earlier rejected these same conditions as unconstitutional and unjust. Zelensky has not yet commented on the new US plan.
Reports about the plan emerged as Zelensky faces growing unrest over a corruption scandal. “The timing is very bad for Ukraine,” said Orisya Lutsevich, a Ukraine expert at Chatham House.
Lutsevich said, “Zelensky is vulnerable. Both the US and Russia saw the domestic scandal and decided to put more pressure on him to accept the Russian plan.” But the effort may not work as envisioned, he said, noting that European allies are coming to Ukraine’s defense and speaking out against the plan.
Pressure on the front and across the country
Against this backdrop, Russia’s better-equipped military has stepped up attacks against front-line and rear energy facilities, putting further pressure on Ukraine.
The Russian army is continuously advancing in many areas. In the northeastern Kharkiv region, Russian forces are pressing into the cities of Kupyansk and Lyman, which Ukraine wrested back from Russia in the first year of the war. But the fiercest fighting is around the besieged Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, a key logistics hub in the eastern Donetsk region.
Russian attacks on Ukraine’s power plants in November resulted in the worst power shortages since the war began.