Over the next year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will likely face increasing internal and external pressure to hold new elections that could oust him, but his removal from power and replacement with a more Moscow-aligned figure remains unlikely, despite Russian efforts. Speaking to Russian state television on Jan. 28, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Moscow is open to negotiations involving Zelensky, but that Moscow does not consider him a legitimate leader capable of signing a final peace agreement, or any other documents, such as the cancellation of a decree Zelensky signed in September 2022 barring Ukrainian negotiations with Putin. Putin said he would appoint a delegation for any such negotiations with Kyiv, akin to the delegation that conducted talks with Ukraine in the war's opening weeks in 2022. Putin went on to say that ''any legal issue'' preventing talks can be resolved, but this would involve the participation of...
