Ukraine’s Parliament extends martial law until August

KYIV - 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.

As the war against Moscow’s invasion rages on, an overwhelming majority of 357 deputies on April 16 supported the extension.

It allows Ukraine to continue mobilising troops and suspends the election cycle.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has faced pressure to hold elections from US President Donald Trump, who has called him a dictator – criticism that prompted Ukrainians to rally around Mr Zelensky and boosted his approval ratings.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly questioned Mr 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 criticising Mr Zelensky more openly.

Mr 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 Mr Zelensky of attempting to strengthen his powers during martial law.

“I want to stress that we should recognise the obvious – the government has started to abuse martial law, using it not only to defend the country, but to build an authoritarian regime,” Mr Poroshenko said during parliamentary debates on April 15.

However, Mr Poroshenko's party overwhelmingly supported the extension of martial law, with only one lawmaker from the party voting against it. REUTERS