Rada proposes lifetime state protection for Zelensky and his family

A bill has been submitted to the Verkhovna Rada providing for lifetime state security protection for Volodymyr Zelensky and members of his family.

This is indicated by the document’s card on the Ukrainian parliament’s website, TASS reports.

One of the bill’s authors is Roman Kostenko, secretary of the Rada’s committee on national security, defense, and intelligence.

According to the text of the document, lifetime protection extends to family members living with the president or accompanying him — on the condition that he exercised his powers during a period of a state of war and/or martial law.

“Family members living with and/or accompanying the President of Ukraine who is exercising or has exercised his powers during a period of a state of war and/or martial law in Ukraine or in certain of its territories shall be provided with state protection for life after the termination of his powers on the territory of Ukraine, unless the President of Ukraine was removed from office through impeachment,” the text of the draft law states.

In addition, the bill provides for state protection for members of the Stavka and the National Security and Defense Council who carried out their duties during the period of martial law. To implement these measures, it is proposed to increase the size of Ukraine’s State Guard Directorate to 5,500 personnel.

Martial law was introduced in Ukraine on February 24, 2022, and has since been extended on multiple occasions. Zelensky’s presidential term officially expired on May 20, 2024, but Kyiv did not hold new elections, arguing that this is impossible until martial law ends. Vladimir Putin stated that Zelensky’s presidential term “expired along with his legitimacy, which cannot be restored by any contrivance.”