HELSINKI – Finland’s president and Norway’s prime minister held a “frank and substantive” discussion with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Oct 27 about efforts to end the war in Ukraine, the Nordic leaders said.
It was the latest effort by Kyiv’s allies to de-escalate the most deadly conflict in Europe since World War II, which erupted when Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
“The outcome of this war will have a direct impact on our and the broader European security. Ending the war requires direct discussions,” President Alexander Stubb said in a joint statement with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store.
The statement noted that the call was “held in consultation with Ukraine” and followed a meeting in Oslo on Oct 20 between Store, Stubb and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky, as well as US envoy Steve Witkoff.
US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, also took part in the meeting remotely.
After the Oslo talks, Witkoff travelled to St Petersburg to meet Putin.
Speaking to reporters in Helsinki, where Nordic leaders are meeting, Store said the 90-minute call highlighted “big differences in views” on Ukraine.
According to a statement from the Kremlin, Putin stressed during the call that it was the European Union’s and NATO’s “confrontational policy” that was “leading to a protraction of hostilities”.
The Kremlin said the three leaders “agreed to continue maintaining direct contact by telephone”.
Stubb and Store initiated the call to discuss “efforts to end the war and promote peace and stability in Europe”, their statement said.
“The war comes with enormous human and material costs. The suffering and destruction will impact generations. In the call, we stressed the importance of de-escalation,” Store said.
Stubb described the discussion between the three as “frank and substantive”.
Shortly after the announcement of the call, Kyiv said Zelensky spoke to the Nordic leaders about the conversation with Putin.
Denmark ‘sceptical’
Stubb confirmed the talks with Zelensky in a social media post and commented: “Finland and Norway will continue to support Ukraine, and the efforts to find a just and lasting peace”.
The leaders stressed they were representing their own countries and did not speak on behalf of Europe, but Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen bemoaned that they had gone “solo”.
“I’m very sceptical about this Norwegian and Finnish initiative. It hasn’t been coordinated with any of the rest of us,” she told reporters while attending a meeting of Nordic leaders, including Store and Stubb, in Finland.
“I honestly don’t know what those two countries think they can achieve with this,” she said.
Store rejected the criticism.
“In the times we live in, it cannot be that only the US administration has a channel to talk to the Russian leadership. European countries must be able to do that as well,” he told reporters.
Relations between Ukraine and the United States have become strained again after Trump suddenly announced in October a deal with Russia to obtain diesel, as part of his efforts to lower oil prices sent soaring by his Iran war.
Ukraine reacted with dismay after Trump also waived sanctions against Russia and appeared to again pivot to Putin.
The Oslo meeting followed furious diplomatic efforts in Washington, Kyiv and Western capitals to calm the situation.
Norway and Finland, both NATO members, share borders with Russia and the statement emphasised that the countries are “firm supporters of Ukraine”. AFP