Russia to start new campaign that Zelenskyy apparently not legitimate – Ukrainian political expert

Ukrainians should prepare for another Russian Psyop (psychological operation) based on narrative that Volodymyr Zelenskyy is no longer legitimate president as his term expires in May, political scientist Oleksiy Koshel said on Radio NV.

"This is the so-called May 20 problem,” Koshel said.

“Despite the fact that it seems unreal to us, I see that this issue is now being actively raised by Russian networks, it is voiced by Russian high-rank officials, this topic has been raised recently by [Belarusian dictator] Aleksandr Lukashenko. I think that we need to prepare, because it will be promoted in Ukraine at various levels [by the Russians]."

Russia's information and propaganda campaign that the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy will be supposedly illegitimate after May 20 is a serious problem, the political scientist believes, and therefore voices the best countermeasures to be taken:

"The first is the joint position of parliamentary groups and factions regarding the President’s legitimacy after May 20,” Koshel said.

“A joint position of political parties, in particular non-parliamentary ones, is something we may require. The position of key experts on constitutional law is also mandatory. We need every Ukrainian to know that Ukrainian president is 1000 percent legitimate after May 20. That's how it is."

A similar opinion was expressed the day before by the Armed Forces 5th Separate Assault Brigade grenadier, sergeant Yuriy Syrotyuk. He is convinced that the most difficult milestone in independent Ukraine's history is coming, already in May of this year. Russia will question the legitimacy of Ukrainian authorities through its spy nets, and a critical situation may arise not at the front, but in the rear.

Read also: Ukraine warns of large-scale Russian psyops using foreign journalists to justify aggression

Kyiv International Sociology Institute of Sociology published the results of its study in February, showing that, as of February 2024, the vast majority of Ukrainians, i.e. 69%, believe that Volodymyr Zelenskyy should perform his duties until the end of martial law.

The five-year term of Zelenskyy's Presidential tenure will expire on May 20. The Constitution anyway says that President should hold his office before the newly elected one does it.

Doubts about Presidential legitimacy after May 2024, when the five-year term expires, are Russian narratives and the Kremlin's planned program, Zelenskyy himself believes.

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Read the original article on The New Voice of Ukraine