He has said his first priority is to reach a cease-fire in the war against Russian proxies in the country’s east that has claimed 13,000 lives.

His party, Servant of the People, does not hold any seats in Parliament. Voting for a new Parliament had been scheduled for October, but Mr. Zelensky dissolved the current Parliament and moved the election to July, aiming to seize an advantage while he remains very popular.

Quotable: “My whole life I tried to do everything to make Ukrainians laugh,” said Mr. Zelensky, who became famous as a comedian. “Now I will do everything to make sure Ukrainians at least won’t cry any more.”

Huawei frozen out in tech war

The Chinese technology giant has begun to feel the effects of a Trump administration order effectively banning American firms from selling components and software to the company.

Google, whose Android software powers Huawei’s smartphones, is limiting support to the company. The German supplier Infineon said it would restrict its business with Huawei. Several chip makers are also cutting Huawei off. Other companies will inevitably follow, our New New World columnist writes.