Pro-Russian forces will seek to sow chaos in Ukraine's next presidential election - MP Kniazhytskyi

He shared his opinions with Espreso TV.

"You understand, elections are a game. There will be pro-Russian forces working to criticize pro-Ukrainian candidates. Remember when Yushchenko was running? There were even ultra-pro-Ukrainian forces accusing him, saying things like, 'Victor Andriyovych, what, your wife is American?' It was a real popular movement countered by another so-called popular movement. That’s why I’m absolutely convinced there will also be ultra-patriotic forces—real ones, not those for sale—especially here in Western Ukraine, where I am right now. At the same time, there will be openly pro-Russian forces pushing the same kind of criticism but from a pro-Russian perspective," he said.

Mykola Kniazhytskyi believes that the aim of pro-Russian forces will be to sow doubt and chaos in society.

"Their task is to plant doubts, to create chaos. That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t fight for elections to happen, but first, we must fight to preserve the country. And for that, Zelenskyy’s role right now is extremely significant. This is exactly why leaders of warring countries often form so-called governments of national unity, reconciliation, consensus, or salvation—whatever you want to call it. The idea is that the government should unite representatives of the full spectrum of democratic forces willing to defend democracy, even if they oppose or criticize the current leadership," said the lawmaker.

He pointed out that there have been examples of such governments in global politics: "They don’t always agree. We saw in Israel how some of Netanyahu's opposition initially joined his government at the start of the war, only to leave later, while others refused outright. But Netanyahu took those steps. Churchill did something similar when he invited the leader of the opposition to serve as his deputy. Moves like this show, even in the absence of elections, that you remain a democratic leader in a different context. It also strengthens the government’s capacity to unite society for victory."

"These are the kinds of actions we’ve been lacking. Volodymyr Zelenskyy has never dared to take such steps. His attempts to engage with civil activists, even in appointing ambassadors, are positive in the sense that he listens to society. But they don’t resolve the broader societal crisis. This opens the door for strengthening pro-Russian forces, which will oppose both him and the forces he is currently fighting against. I don’t think Zelenskyy has fully grasped this reality yet," Kniazhytskyi added.

• On December 18, Yurii Bohdanov, a specialist in strategic communications in business, public administration and politics, said that Ukrainian politicians have begun preparing for the elections and are testing their electoral field, although they publicly say that elections are impossible.