Activists carry a makeshift coffin draped with the Ukraine flag as they march in the "Ukraine will never surrender" protest near US President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in West Palm Beach, Florida, on March 14, 2025. Photo: AFP
Ukraine’s parliament has extended martial law until August, lawmakers said, delaying the timing of new elections that the United States and Russia have been pushing for, reports Reuters.
As the war with Russia rages on, an overwhelming majority of 357 deputies on Wednesday supported the extension. It allows the country to continue mobilizing troops and suspends the election cycle.
President Volodymyr Zelensky has faced pressure to hold elections from US President Donald Trump, who called him a dictator — criticism that prompted Ukrainians to rally around Zelensky and boosted his approval ratings.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly questioned Zelensky’s legitimacy after his term ended in 2024.
But in line with the Ukrainian legislation, elections are impossible during martial law. As peace talks led by the Trump administration created hopes for a potential ceasefire and eventual elections, some Ukrainian opposition politicians started criticizing Zelensky more openly.
Petro Poroshenko, a former president and leader of the largest opposition party, “European Solidarity,” said there was no doubt martial law should be extended, especially after deadly Russian strikes on Sumy and Kryvyi Rih this month.
But he accused Zelensky of attempting to strengthen his powers during martial law. “I want to stress that we should recognize the obvious — the government has started to abuse martial law, using it not only to defend the country, but to build an authoritarian regime,” Poroshenko said during parliamentary debates on Tuesday.
However Poroshenko’s party overwhelmingly supported the extension of martial law, with only one lawmaker from the party voting against it.
