President Zelensky will not lose legitimacy after 21 May - Justice Ministry

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will not lose legitimacy when his five-year term expires on 21 May 2024. Justice Minister Denys Malyska said this in an interview with the BBC on 10 May.

When asked by the BBC about the topic, often raised by the Russian Federation, that the president will allegedly lose legitimacy after 21 May, when his five-year term ends, Maliuska said

No, he will not lose his legitimacy ... The powers of the president continue until the next one is elected. But many norms of the Constitution are formulated in such a way that whoever wants to find something to pick on or build some conspiracy theory on something, he will find it.

The minister said that therefore we should expect "a lot of noise and outcry", especially given that the authors of the Ukrainian Constitution had little faith in the reality of a full-scale war.

When asked by the BBC what it means in legal terms for Ukraine that Russia has put acting President Zelensky on the wanted list, the minister replied:

Not only Vladimir Alexandrovich is wanted, but a number of other top officials. And for all of them, it means that travelling of any kind - business or non-business - in the future to countries that, let's say, are not pro-Western or are not active allies of Ukraine, becomes a bit riskier.

Maliuca noted that through the mechanisms of mutual legal assistance, requests, there can be procedural and bureaucratic complications.

Not for the incumbent President - that is, Volodymyr Alexandrovych can travel freely, he has immunity as head of state, of course - said the Minister of Justice.

Maliushka stressed that given the situation in the country, it would be a huge mistake to publicly question the legitimacy of the president now.