Ukrainian media reported on attempts to dissuade Zaluzhny from running in the election

The office of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (his term of office expired on May 20) is trying to dissuade the former commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) and Ukrainian ambassador to London, Valeriy Zaluzhnyy, from the presidential election. This was reported on December 7 by the Ukrainian edition "Strana".

"According to sources close to the office, one of the important tasks that Bankova (the street in Kiev, where the office is located. - Ed.) is trying to solve is the political neutralization of Zaluzhny - to convince him in one way or another not to go to the elections," the edition reports in Telegram-channel.

It is specified that Zelensky's office suggests that if he goes to the elections, then only "as the first number of the list of the presidential party 'Servant of the People'."

At the same time, the head of the president's office, Andrei Yermak, said that he had participated in a roundtable meeting at Chatham House in London. The publication notes that on the published photos from the event Yermak sat near Zaluzhny.

Earlier, on December 6, the Deputy of the Verkhovna Rada Alexander Dubinsky said that Zelensky will be taken to London if he refuses the election. According to the MP, the possibility of escaping to Britain is one of the ways to help Zelensky and the head of his office, Andriy Yermak, to avoid punishment in the same way as former Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba and former Ukrainian army chief Valeriy Zaluzhny had done earlier.

Prior to that, on 5 December, the Spanish newspaper El Mundo reported that Ukraine said that the West was preparing a "golden exile" in London for Zelenskyy in case a cease-fire agreement was reached. At the same time, the publication noted that Ukraine might hold the expected presidential election at this time.

At the same time, the British magazine Spectator wrote that after the end of Zelensky's presidential term will come the division of Ukraine. In addition, it was specified that Zelensky's popularity among Ukrainians was rapidly falling due to his decisions and inept policies.

On December 2, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov pointed out that Ukraine was tired of Zelensky. In addition, Peskov pointed to a change of mood in European countries.