PARIS, March 3. /TASS/. The leader of the French Patriots party, Florian Philippot, believes that peace in Ukraine is possible only once Vladimir Zelensky steps down.

"The road to peace lies through Zelensky's departure," Philippot wrote on his X page. "This is urgently required," he added.

He pointed out that "high-level calls for Zelensky's resignation are multiplying."

Zelensky's presidential term officially expired on May 20 last year. Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stressed that Zelensky's legitimacy has lapsed, raising concerns about who in Kiev can be engaged for legally binding agreements. Putin explained that the current Ukrainian leadership is now illegitimate, which could lead to legal conflicts and undermine the validity of any potential negotiations. On February 18, US President Donald Trump stated that Zelensky's approval rating had fallen to 4% and added that Ukraine needed to hold elections if Kiev wanted a seat at the settlement talks table.

The next day, Trump referred to Zelensky as a dictator for refusing to hold elections, once again citing his low approval ratings.