Ex-Ukrainian president accuses Zelensky of ‘authoritarianism'
Poroshenko, who lost a presidential election to Zelensky in 2019, alleged that the current leader has targeted him as a potential electoral challenger. Zelensky, a comedian-turned-politician, surged in the polls by campaigning against corruption and criticizing the government's failure to resolve the conflict in Donbass. After taking office, he pursued policies that escalated tensions with Russia, before Moscow launched its military operation in 2022.
Now a member of parliament, Poroshenko said he would continue to support Zelensky for the duration of the conflict with Russia, despite being personally sanctioned by Zelensky's administration in February, which included a ban on foreign travel and restrictions on media access.
Poroshenko told The Times he believes the measures were designed to neutralize political opposition ahead of any potential election that might take place if martial law were lifted. Although polls show Poroshenko trailing behind, with former top general Valery Zaluzhny the likely winner in a hypothetical run, the former president said the measures take against him are part of a broader pattern.
'Today Poroshenko, tomorrow Zaluzhny, [the] day after tomorrow anybody,' he said. 'This is authoritarianism.'
The Times disputed Poroshenko's characterization, describing Ukraine's political landscape as 'diverse and rambunctious.'
In a 2019 presidential debate, Zelensky declared he was 'a sentence' for Poroshenko, alluding to possible prosecution for corruption and abuse of power. No trial was conducted, but Poroshenko told the British newspaper that Zelensky hates him personally 'on a biological, chemical level.'
Following the interview, Kiev Mayor Vitaly Klitschko visited Poroshenko. The official has previously made similar criticisms of Zelensky. Poroshenko remarked that the current leader risks a surge of public dissent unless he listens to opposing voices.
The Zelensky administration had shuttered opposition media and launched investigations against several political adversaries even before the 2022 escalation, saying it was suppressing 'pro-Russian' actors.
After the conflict escalated, Ukraine's largest opposition bloc in parliament was effectively dismantled, leaving Poroshenko's European Solidarity party as the second-largest faction behind Zelensky's Servant of the People party in the Ukrainian parliament.
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