Klychko says political processes in Ukraine have already begun, and the war may end in 2-3 months

Kyiv Mayor Vitalii Klychko at the forum «Ukraine's democratic resilience during the war and recovery». Photo: NikVesti

Kyiv Mayor Vitalii Klychko has suggested that the fighting could end in two to three months, but that political processes in the country have already been launched.

He said this at the forum «Democratic Resilience of Ukraine during the War and the Recovery Period», which took place on 11 February in Kyiv, NikVesti.

«By and large, we are now talking about things that have not yet happened, but everyone is already running somewhere, everyone is talking about some kind of election, and at this time our heroes are dying. And every day, unfortunately, we are losing territory. And we still can't say clearly when we will be able to end this war, when we will stop losing, when peace will be restored in Ukraine. And this is a question that everyone asks each other, but there is no answer. But the political processes have already begun, everyone, even the irons and kettles, are saying: elections, elections, elections,»he said.

Forum «Democratic Resilience of Ukraine during the War and Recovery». Photo: NikVesti

In particular, Vitalii Klychko said that after the war is over, an active election campaign will begin in Ukraine. He warned that this could lead to unrest, as in such a situation, political struggle could escalate into conflicts and deepen the split in society.

«We can assume that the fighting will end in a month or two. It is not clear on what terms, but I am sure that they are hardly positive. The so-called «compromise» can be very painful for every Ukrainian. We all understand this as well, taking into account many factors. Having an army is not a cheap pleasure, it is now almost a million people. And when the war is over, at least a third should be in the reserve. These are people who are currently receiving salaries, and they will need to find a new job quickly. And at this stage, the election process will begin. I'm afraid that the elections could become a struggle to the death. The so-called compromise may be painfully perceived in society. And at this moment, with elections with roughly the same slogans of all political forces, taking into account many components, I am very afraid that there will be some kind of unrest in this direction. And God forbid we talk about any confrontation or civil confrontation, because we can see from the history of different countries, after military operations, given this, you know, depressive mood, such things have already happened. There are such warnings. Therefore, the unity of all branches of government and society is extremely important,» he said.

The forum «Democratic Resilience of Ukraine during the War and Recovery», organised by the Westminster Foundation for Democracy (WFD) together with the National Interest Protection Network «ANTS» and the Civil Network «OPORA», aimed to unite the efforts of political parties, civil society and international partners to strengthen Ukraine's democratic institutions in the context of war and post-war recovery.

The main topics included the role of political parties in the recovery, cooperation between civil society and the government, and the challenges of the first post-war elections.

Oleksandr Senkevych, the mayor of Mykolaiv, was scheduled to speak on the initial programme, but he was unable to attend. The forum was also attended by the ambassadors of the UK, Canada, the EU and the US, members of the Verkhovna Rada and political leaders, as well as representatives of the Central Election Commission.

As a reminder, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy believes that elections in Ukraineare very important, but they can only be held after the hot phase of the war is over and martial law is lifted.