Ukraineis ready to hold elections in the next 60 to 90 days if its allies can guarantee security for the vote, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday, following criticism from his American counterpartDonald Trump.
"I am ready for the elections," Zelensky told reporters from his plane as he left Italy following meetings with the Italian prime minister and Pope Leo.
"Not only that, I am asking – and I am now declaring this openly – the United States of America to help me, together with our European colleagues, to ensure security for the elections," he added.
His comments come after an interview in which the US president told Politico he believed the Ukrainian leadership was using war as an excuse "not to hold an election" and that it was time for the country to go to the polls.
"They talk about a democracy, but it gets to a point where it's not a democracy anymore," Trump told Politico.
The Ukrainian leader pushed back on the suggestion he was clinging to power, saying security was his main concern.
"How can this be done under missile attacks on our military. The question is, how will they vote?" he said.
Zelensky added that he was asking Ukrainian lawmakers to prepare legislative proposals on how to make elections possible during martial law.
He also cautioned that the matter was "for the people of Ukraine, not the people of other countries."
"With all due respect to our partners, I will say frankly that I am ready for the elections," Zelensky added.
'Refined' proposal to end the war
The development follows days of talks between Ukraine and its allies aimed at securing an end to the nearly four-year war.
Following a meeting withEuropean leadersthis week, Zelensky said he expects Ukraine will hand over an updated peace proposal to the US on Wednesday.
"We are working today and we will work tomorrow. I think we will hand it over tomorrow," he said on Tuesday.
Earlier in the day he said Ukraine and itsEuropean allieswere almost ready to send a "refined" peace proposal to the US after discussions in London on Monday with the leaders of Britain, France and Germany.
In his interview with Politico, Trump accused Zelensky of not reading the most recent US proposal. When asked about the accusation on Tuesday, Zelensky told reporters he has read multiple versions of the plan and that the Ukrainian team was still making changes to it. He said it was vital for Ukraine and the United States to hold leadership-level meetings "in the coming weeks, next week, or maybe in a week's time" regarding the plan.
Three different documents are under discussion with the Americans and the Europeans, Zelensky said.
One document is a 20-point, evolving framework for peace. The second, he said, is about security guarantees.
"We are working on this. I am waiting for relevant proposals from our military and their dialogue with the Americans," Zelensky said about the second document.
The third document, Zelensky said, is about Ukraine's recovery. The president said efforts to that end should take place after the war ends or after a ceasefire is secured.
'Very important alliance' at stake
While Zelensky and his officials continue to meet with European allies, Trump's increasinglyconfrontationalattitude towards Europe has raised questions about the region's role in a peace plan for Ukraine.
On Tuesday, Pope Leo expressed concern at Trump's recent Ukraine peace plan, suggesting it would weaken the US-Europe alliance.
The Pope said the plan marks "a huge change in what was for many, many years a true alliance between Europe and the United States." Recent remarks by the US president appear to be "trying to break apart what needs to be a very important alliance today and in the future," the pontiff added.
Pope Leo did not specify which of Trump's comments he was referring to. But in recent days, Trump's newnational security strategyhas been released and it involves a more confrontational posture towards Europe.
The document takes aim at European governments for their support of Ukraine, blaming "European officials who hold unrealistic expectations for the war" for standing in the way of peace.
The pope stressed the importance of Europe's role in securing peace for Ukraine.
"Trying to reach a peace agreement without including Europe in the talks, so to speak, is unrealistic, because it's a war in Europe, and I think that Europe must be part of the security guarantees that are being sought, both for today and for the future," he said.
Not strong enough to retake Crimea
Meanwhile, Zelensky also acknowledged that Ukraine does not have the strength to take backCrimea, which Russiaillegally annexedin 2014.
"I will be honest – today we do not have the strength for all this, we do not have sufficient support for all this," he said after being asked whether he had told Putin, during their firstmeeting in Parisin 2019, that he wants Crimea back and wants Ukraine to be part of NATO.
Zelensky and Putin's first and only meeting since the Ukrainian leader took office was an attempt toward ending the conflict in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region a little over two years before Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.
US President Donald Trump referred to this meeting in his interview with Politico.
"Maybe I said that at the first meeting. And I believe that I was right," Zelensky recounted before adding that today, Ukraine does not have the ability to get Crimea back.
CNN's Christopher Lamb and Kit Maher contributed to this report.
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