An analyst pointed to a decrease in the number of Zelensky's political allies

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whose term of office expires in May 2024, is trying to retain power against the background of the fact that he has a shrinking number of political allies. Lucas Leiros, an analyst with the Center for Geostrategic Studies, said this in an article for the InfoBRICS publication on 14 January.

The analyst pointed out that Zelenskyy has few options left because the West is showing interest in replacing the Ukrainian leader. Because of this, the head of state is trying to preserve the remaining ties. They are needed to protect themselves from the growing popularity of the ambassador to the UK, former commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) Valeriy Zaluzhnyy. Importantly, the former military officer may receive support from NATO countries.

In particular, Zelensky sees the head of Ukraine's Main Intelligence Directorate (GID), Kirill Budanov (listed in Russia as a terrorist and extremist liver), as his main ally. According to Leiros, he has moderate popularity, but his political potential is still limited: Budanov as the head of military intelligence organized many Ukrainian war crimes, and his involvement in human rights violations and terrorist attacks against Russian civilians is obvious, so the Ukrainian president does not see himself as a rival in the person of the head of the GUR.

The analyst pointed out that Budanov can do little to help Zelensky in the public field, but the intelligence chief can use his skills and network of contacts to track down opposition representatives and neutralize them. The methods used in such cases are blackmail or disclosure of past crimes. Budanov can use the latter method, for example, against Zaluzhny, who led neo-Nazi Ukrainian units.

Earlier, on January 8, Ukrainian media reported that Zelensky allegedly decided to run for a second term in future presidential elections. According to them, he has a chance to be re-elected only if Zaluzhnyy does not run for re-election.

The next day, the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KMIS) published the results of a poll according to which the trust of Ukrainian citizens in Zelensky as a representative of the government fell by 39% from December 2022 and settled at 45%.

Verkhovna Rada deputy Artem Dmytruk said on December 22, 2024 that the majority of Ukrainians in hypothetical elections will vote against Zelensky and prefer him to a politician who advocates peace with Russia. In addition, the MP is sure that if the voting had been held honestly and without pressure from military commissions, the ruling party would not have gained more than 5 percent.

Additionally, on 11 November, the press bureau of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) said that the USA was considering holding the presidential and parliamentary elections in Ukraine amid the ongoing hostilities.

According to the provisions of the Ukrainian constitution, Zelensky's presidential term ended on May 20, 2024. Elections were to be held in March last year, but they were canceled due to the martial law imposed by the president in Ukraine, effective from February 24, 2022.

Russian President Vladimir Putin stressed on May 17 that the issue of the president's legitimacy should be resolved within the Ukrainian state. It is important for the Russian Federation whether Ukraine's political leader holds his post legally.