"We all understand that now, in wartime, when there are many challenges, it is utterly irresponsible to engage in topics related to an election in such a frivolous manner," he said. In peacetime, Ukraine would had held parliamentary elections in October and the first round of presidential vote in early spring 2024. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said at the weekend the president was weighing the pros and cons of a wartime poll. Zelenskiy himself had previously said he would be prepared to hold the vote if Ukraine secured the assistance it needed - and if election were deemed necessary. Zelenskiy had earlier said the attack in southern Zaporizhzhia region was "a tragedy that could have been avoided".

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Persons: Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Zelenskiy, Lindsey Graham, Dmytro Kuleba, Ron Popeski, Oleksandr Kozhukhar, Chris Reese, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: U.S, Republican, Ukrainian, Thomson Locations: KYIV, Kyiv, Ukraine, Russian, Ukrainian, Zaporizhzhia, Lincoln