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Zelensky, five years since taking office as the president of Ukraine

2024-05-26 15:32:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

May 20 marked five years since Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenski took office. According to Ukrainian law, the president has a five-year term, but the election has been postponed while the country's military mobilization law remains in effect. President Zelenskiy has had a challenging tenure, leading the country through the difficult period of Russia's large-scale offensive, which is still ongoing.

Five years ago, a young politician, but a familiar face to Ukrainians, became the country's president. 41-year-old actor, comedian and entrepreneur Volodymyr Zelenskyy took office as the sixth president of Ukraine.

"Ukraine is a country with many political paradoxes. And Zelensky's presidency is one of the most extraordinary paradoxes. Politics was for him a subject that he treated with sarcasm and jokes. But, he suddenly found himself in the place of those who criticized and mocked him", says Volodymyr Fesenko, Center for Political Studies "Penta".

"In America, people were surprised that this actor managed to win 73% of the vote. It was simply amazing! But he didn't have a lot of experience, and I think in the early days, he needed some time to build a team of advisers and gain the experience he needed," says John Tefft, former US ambassador to Ukraine.

Among Mr. Zelenski's promises were the fight against corruption and poverty, as well as trying to convince Russian President Vladimir Putin to return Crimea and Donbass to Ukraine.

"If I meet Mr. Putin, I will tell him: 'Finally, you gave us back our territories. How much money are you willing to pay as compensation to keep them?'”

"He thought he would start negotiations with Putin and convince him that he wants peace and that Putin also wants peace. He tried to do that, but it didn't work. It turned out that Zelensky wanted peace, but not Putin. He wanted Ukraine to submit," says analyst Volodymyr Fesenko.

On February 24, 2022, Russia launched a full-scale attack on Ukraine. Many Western experts thought President Zelenskiy would leave the country, but he stayed in Ukraine, leading it through the war.

"Zelensky became a wartime leader. He changed physically and psychologically. He almost stopped laughing. He looks more mature and tougher," says Mr. Fesenko.

In 2022, Time and Financial Times magazines named Mr. Zelenski "Person of the Year." He has made numerous trips to the front line, including those to Bakhmut and Avdiivka, as well as the liberated cities of Bucha, Izum and Kherson. He has given two speeches in the US Congress and has met many times with President Joe Biden.

"Overall, he has shown strong leadership skills. Without it, I don't know where Ukraine would be today," says analyst John Hardie from the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.

President Zelensky says he will remain president as long as the military mobilization law is in force in Ukraine./ Voa