Ukraine President's Ratings Sag As Russia Threat Lingers

As a political novice making an unlikely run to be Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy vowed to reach out to Russia-backed rebels in the east who were fighting Ukrainian forces and make strides toward resolving the conflict.

Photo Insert: President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy was sworn in as Head of State on May 20, 2019.

The assurances contributed to his landslide victory in 2019, Yunas Karmanau reported for the Associated Press (AP).

But after 2½ years in office, Zelenskyy is watching his once-enormous support dissolve as Ukraine stands on what many fear is the verge of a Russian invasion that would not only take the rebel regions but possibly the rest of the country.

To make matters worse, the incumbent whom Zelenskyy defeated in 2019 has boldly returned to the country to face charges of treason and stir up opposition to him.

Analysts, meanwhile, suggest that Moscow is seeking to bolster support among pro-Russia politicians in Ukraine and that the buildup of Russian forces near Ukraine’s border is aimed partly at destabilizing the country’s politics.

Britain’s intelligence services claimed last month that Russia was seeking to overthrow Zelenskyy’s government and replace him with the leader of a small party that opposes Ukraine’s ambitions to join NATO and the European Union. Zelenskyy tried to calm the political turbulence Sunday by downplaying the stepped-up warnings from the US about the imminent Russian invasion.

But Ukrainians have little confidence that Zelenskyy can ensure that stability. According to a January poll by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology, only 30% of the country’s people want Zelenskyy to run for a second term and even fewer — 23% — would vote for him.

The continuing conflict in the rebel east and the prospect of a full-scale war aren’t the only reasons for his declining support.

“Zelenskyy promised to end the war and defeat corruption, but this did not happen,” said Anatoly Rudenko, a 48-year-old driver in Kyiv. “Prices are rising, corruption has not gone away and we have begun to live even poorer.”

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