Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he is prepared to step aside once peace in his country is achieved.
On Wednesday, Mr Zelensky revealed that he is "ready not to go for the second term because it’s not my goal".
The Ukrainian leader added that he wanted "to be with my country" during a "very difficult period of time".
He went on to affirm that his primary focus is to see peace restored to his nation.
He went on to affirm that his primary focus is to see peace restored to the Eastern European nation
| PAMr Zelensky was first elected to the Ukrainian presidency in 2019 after the actor-turned-politician lead his centrist Servant of the People party to victory.
Ukraine was scheduled to hold elections in March 2022, but they were suspended indefinitely as the country has remained under martial law since the Russian invasion began in February 2022.
Mr Zelensky was dubbed a "dictator" by US President Donald Trump as relations between the two reached breaking point earlier this year.
And the Ukrainian President has now accepted that his citizens may opt for “a leader with... a new mandate” as his country attempts to rebuild after the conflict.
Mr Zelensky, a former comedian, was first elected to the Ukrainian presidency in 2019
|GETTY
Mr Zelensky said he would be open to holding elections in Ukraine if Moscow agreed to a ceasefire.
He said: “During the ceasefire, I think security can give the possibility to have elections."
The White House has now joined Kyiv in calling for a halt in fighting to allow for peace negotiations to take place.
However, Vladimir Putin has repeatedly rejected attempts to hold talks with his Ukrainian counterpart, despite having an "extremely productive meeting" with Mr Trump in Alaska just weeks ago.
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The American and Ukrainian leaders met at the United Nations in New York earlier this week
| GETTYThe American and Ukrainian leaders met at the United Nations in New York earlier this week.
Shortly afterwards, Mr Trump appeared to show a dramatic change in rhetoric and urged Ukraine to "fight and win" all of its territory lost in the war.
On his Truth Social platform, the President said Russia was fighting an "aimless" war, before calling the country a "paper tiger".
Mr Zelensky said after the meeting that an understanding was reached that the US would be prepared to provide security guarantees in the aftermath of the war, adding that American support could be a "game-changer".
According to an opinion poll from Gallup, 67 per cent of Ukrainians hold a positive view of Mr Zelensky.
In the months after Russian forces invaded the sovereign nation, he commanded an approval rating of 84 per cent - one of the highest of any world leader.
However, despite the president having high levels of public support, 85 per cent of respondents said they believe the Ukrainian government oversaw widespread corruption.
Between 2014 and 2024, the Eastern European nation was regularly featured in the top 10 rankings for perceived corruption worldwide.
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