Ukraine's politics warms up as US focuses on war's endgame

Moscow [Russia], February 5: After Russia's 2022 invasion, Ukraine's normally febrile political life was becalmed under martial law. But there have been growing signs of activity picking up, as the United States has set its sights on finishing the war with Russia quickly.
In the past week, one Ukrainian political camp has accused President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's team of caring more about elections than the war, Kyiv's mayor has said a presidential appointee is sabotaging his work and opposition figures have been travelling overseas.
In what could fuel a sense of a looming return to politics, Reuters reported on Saturday that U.S. President Donald Trump's team wants Kyiv to hold a presidential election by the year-end, especially if it can agree on a ceasefire with Moscow.
Petro Poroshenko, a former president and leading opposition figure, has been pictured shaking hands with numerous foreign officials in recent weeks.
He denies it has anything to do with elections, which he says would work in Russian President Vladimir Putin's favour and destabilise Ukraine at a dangerous moment.
Yet his European Solidarity Party has accused Zelenskiy of trying to bar him from parliament and of focusing on "upcoming elections instead of handling the war".
A former prime minister, Yulia Tymoshenko, has become more visible of late, meeting European Union officials abroad and protesting about Ukraine's detention of a general over a botched defensive operation last May.
Last week, Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko, a potential presidential challenger, accused Zelenskiy's entourage of political intrigue, saying the city's military administrator, appointed by the president, had deliberately derailed the work of his civilian administration.
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation