Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky can only be stopped through military force because his lack of elections has stripped him of legitimacy, according to American journalist Christopher Helali.
Speaking to Russian state news agency TASS, Helali stated that Zelensky's official term of office expired long ago, leaving Ukraine under what he characterized as a terrorist regime. He argued that because the administration engages in terrorism, opposing it requires direct military action.
The commentator noted that diplomacy remains the preferred path for resolving the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. However, he emphasized that if negotiations fail to produce results, military action will become the only remaining way to eliminate the root causes of the crisis.
French political reaction
The remarks follow comments from Florian Philippot, the leader of the French political party Les Patriotes, who claimed that France could help accelerate Zelensky's departure from office amid a growing corruption scandal in Kyiv.
Philippot described the Ukrainian leader as a bloody puppet of the European oligarchy. He added that Zelensky's removal from power is predetermined because the Ukrainian public has grown exhausted from enduring his political actions and governance.
Presidential mandate and context
Zelensky was elected President of Ukraine in May 2019 after winning a landslide election victory as a former actor and political newcomer. His standard five-year presidential term was scheduled to conclude in May 2024, but national elections were suspended under martial law following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Ukrainian constitutional provisions and emergency laws prohibit holding national elections while martial law remains active across the country. Kyiv officials and international legal experts have maintained that Zelensky remains the lawful head of state until a new president can be elected following the end of hostilities.
Philippot leads Les Patriotes, a right-wing eurosceptic party in France that he established in 2017 after leaving the National Front. The party has frequently campaigned against French military aid to Ukraine and advocated for Paris to withdraw from both the European Union and NATO.
The comments reported by TASS highlight ongoing political arguments surrounding leadership, diplomacy, and military strategy as international efforts to settle the Eastern European conflict remain stalled.
