Petro poroshenko
Ukraine to inaugurate comedian Zelensky as president
A month after scoring a landslide victory against incumbent Petro Poroshenko in polls, the 41-year-old becomes Ukraine's youngest post-Soviet president.
Merkel, who met incumbent Ukraine president Petro Poroshenko earlier this month in Berlin, added that she would welcome receiving Zelensky soon.
Volodymyr Zelensky, whose only previous political role was playing the president on TV, trounced incumbent Petro Poroshenko by taking 73% of the vote, according to exit polls.
The move to impose martial law came after Poroshenko warned of a build-up of Russian forces near Ukraine's borders, escalating the most dangerous crisis in years between the ex-Soviet neighbours.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko’s comments to German media were part of a concerted push by Kiev to gain Western support for more sanctions against Moscow.
Ankara's often brittle relations with Moscow have flourished since mid-2016 in a rapprochement that has sometimes troubled the West.
Russia opened fire on the Ukrainian boats and then seized them and their crews on Sunday near Crimea - which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
President Petro Poroshenko said martial law was necessary to bolster Ukraine’s defences after Russia seized three Ukrainian naval ships and took their crew prisoner at the weekend.
The confrontation at sea has raised fears of a wider military escalation and the UN Security Council was to hold an emergency session later Monday to consider a response.
Ukraine’s parliament had been due to vote this week on legislation to devolve more power to its regions.
He did not elaborate, but said criminals were benefiting from instability in the east.
The leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France agreed to meet in Belarus.
Petro Poroshenko proclaimed reforms to make the strife-torn country fit for EU membership.
The U.S. & EU have imposed new sanctions against Russia, tightening financial measures against Moscow.
Petro Poroshenko told a televised meeting of the government a ceasefire was proving difficult to maintain.
The ceasefire, which took effect on Friday evening, is part of a peace plan intended to end the conflict.
This is part of a drive to end a war that has triggered a crisis in relations between Russia and the West.
The ceasefire deal was struck in the Belarusian capital along with a deal allowing for prisoner exchanges
Petro Poroshenko confirmed that envoys meeting in Minsk had signed a ceasefire agreement.