The Japan Times - Putin calls to remove Zelensky, 'finish off' Ukrainian troops

A rapprochement between Washington and Moscow since Trump's return to office and the US leader's threats to stop supporting Kyiv have bolstered Putin's confidence more than three years into an offensive that has killed tens of thousands on both sides.

Ukraine fears it could be forced to accept a final peace deal on terms that are favourable to Moscow if it loses the support of its most important backer.

The renewed call to essentially topple Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky was the latest demonstration of Putin's long-standing desire to install a more Moscow-friendly regime in Kyiv.

"We could, of course, discuss with the United States, even with European countries, and of course with our partners and friends, under the auspices of the UN, the possibility of establishing a transitional administration in Ukraine," Putin said on the sidelines of an Arctic forum.

"What for? To organise a democratic presidential election that would result in the coming to power of a competent government that would have the confidence of the people, and then begin negotiations with these authorities on a peace agreement and sign legitimate documents," he said.

When launching its offensive in 2022, Moscow aimed to take Kyiv in a matter of days, but was instead repulsed by a smaller Ukrainian army.

In the first days of the offensive, Putin issued a public call for Ukraine's generals to topple Zelensky, whom Putin has repeatedly denigrated, without providing any evidence, as a neo-Nazi and drug addict.

Moscow has also repeatedly questioned Zelensky's "legitimacy" as Ukrainian president, after his initial five-year mandate ended in May 2024.

Under Ukrainian law, elections are suspended during times of martial law and military conflict, and Zelensky's major domestic opponents have all said elections should not be held until after the conflict.

Putin, in power for 25 years and repeatedly elected in votes with no competition, has throughout the conflict accused Ukraine of not being a democracy.

- 'Finish them off' -

Putin also called for his troops to press their advantage on the battlefield and step up their attacks, even as he says Moscow has halted its strikes on Ukrainian energy targets.

"I was saying not so long ago: 'We will finish them off.' There are reasons to believe that we will finish them off," Putin said.

"We are gradually, not as fast as some would like, but nevertheless persistently and confidently moving toward achieving all the goals stated at the beginning of the special operation," the Kremlin leader added, using his term for the offensive.

The United States is trying to broker a ceasefire between Moscow and Kyiv.

Putin rejected a joint US-Ukrainian proposal for an unconditional and full ceasefire, but says it has agreed not to strike Ukrainian energy targets for 30 days.

Kyiv has accused Moscow of violating that commitment and called on Washington to "react".

Moscow has also accused Kyiv of breaking its own pledge to not target energy sites -- claims rejected by Ukraine's army.

Russia's defence ministry on Friday accused Ukraine of firing rockets and more than a dozen drones at its energy infrastructure over the past 24 hours.

Regional officials in Ukraine meanwhile said Russia launched dozens of drones at the country overnight, sparking fires at infrastructure and agricultural sites in the south of the country.

The Ukrainian air force said Russia had launched 163 drones at the country in its latest aerial attack.

Emergency services in the southern Odesa region of Ukraine published images of buildings on fire after the attack and said one person was wounded.

- 'Few answers' -

"Russia is trying to derail the path to peace by choosing to continue the war," Andriy Yermak, the Ukrainian presidency's chief of staff, said in response to the attacks.

Officials in the Mykolaiv and Dnipropetrovsk regions said the Russian attacks had damaged agricultural facilities there.

Zelensky met in Paris on Thursday with Ukraine's key European backers in a bid to strike a unified position of support against Trump's overhaul of US policy on Ukraine.

But he said after the talks he had "many questions" and "few answers" over discussions led by France and Britain on a possible European troop deployment as part of any wider ceasefire or peace deal.

T.Shimizu--JT