Kyiv, Ukraine - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is planning to schedule a presidential election and a peace referendum for May 15 under pressure from the US, a bombshell Financial Times report said.

The newspaper on Wednesday cited Ukrainian and Western officials familiar with the matter, but not Zelensky himself.

According to the report, the former TV star could announce the election on February 24, the fourth anniversary of the Russian invasion. Then there would be a vote in May to elect a president and to approve a peace agreement with Russia.

Zelensky has already tasked the parliament with preparing the necessary legal changes for an election during wartime. He also reported last week of pressure from the US to end the war by June.

China China issues furious response to Trump administration's claims about nuclear tests: "Outright lies"

The US will only provide security guarantees if Kyiv concedes by then, the Financial Times reported. President Donald Trump's administration is also demanding that Ukraine relinquish the part of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions it still controls.

The Kyiv Independent, however, cited a source from Zelensky's presidential office who said there would be no elections until security was guaranteed.

The demand for a presidential election in Ukraine originally came from Russia, which claims Zelensky is no longer a legitimate leader after his initial term in office expired. Trump has adopted this demand.

Kyiv has so far pointed out that an election cannot take place due to the martial law imposed as a result of Russia's brutal war.

Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian men are at the front, and millions more has become refugees at home and abroad.