Thousands in Kyiv Protest Zelenskiy’s Plan For Local Elections in Eastern Ukraine

About 10,000 people including Ukraine’s former president Petro Poroshenko rallied on Sunday in Kyiv against President Volodymyr Zelenskiy’s plan to hold local elections in an eastern Ukrainian territory under the control of Russia-backed separatists. On October 1, Ukraine, Russia, and mediators Germany and France signed a tentative agreement with the separatists on guidelines for holding local elections in eastern Ukraine. Zelenskiy has described the deal as a necessary intermediate step ahead of organizing a summit with the leaders of Russia, France, and Germany to push for a peace deal.