The president of Finland, Alexander Stubb, and the prime minister of Norway, Jonas Gahr Store, held a phone call on Tuesday with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, to discuss the latest movements regarding a possible peace initiative in Ukraine. The conversation took place after the summit held last week in Oslo and the subsequent trip to Saint Petersburg by the U.S. envoy, Steve Witkoff, to continue the dialogue on the process.
According to a joint statement released by the Finnish Presidency and the Norwegian Government, the conversation took place "in consultation with Ukraine" and was driven directly by Stubb and Store, who were in Helsinki, in order to "address the Russian aggression against Ukraine and the diplomatic efforts to end the war and promote peace and stability in Europe."
The official text emphasizes that "Finland and Norway share a border with Russia and are strong advocates for Ukraine" and specifies that the main purpose of the call was to convey to Putin "direct messages about future negotiations that contribute to ending the war," in addition to discussing the upcoming meetings in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), both in a trilateral format and those planned between Russia, Ukraine, and the United States.
The Nordic authorities also emphasized that Stubb and Store intervened as "leaders of their respective countries" and not "on behalf of Europe as a whole," reminding that "Norway and Finland have always promoted peace and security in the region." The note highlights that "both countries have a shared interest in stability and predictability in the Baltic Sea and the High North of Europe."
In this line, Stubb stressed that the conversation with Putin was "frank and substantial." "We are neighboring countries of Russia. The outcome of this war will have a direct impact on our security and that of Europe. Ending the war requires direct discussions," defended the Finnish president.
Store, for his part, recalled that the war in Ukraine, triggered by the invasion order signed by Putin in February 2022, has caused "enormous human and material costs" and warned that "the suffering and destruction will impact several generations." "We emphasized in the call the importance of de-escalation," added the Norwegian head of government.
From Moscow, the Kremlin spokesman, Dimitri Peskov, confirmed that the call took place early in the day, although he avoided providing additional details, as reported by the Russian news agency TASS. "Yes, we are preparing a statement," he limited himself to responding to questions from journalists about the contact with the two European leaders.
Subsequently, the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, reported a conversation with Stubb and Store to review the content of the previous call with Putin and express his gratitude for their "active support" for the diplomatic path and for peace initiatives alongside the "partners." "It is necessary to have peace, de-escalation is required, and Russia must stop prolonging the war," he emphasized.
Zelensky also explained that "Alex and Jonas have made it clear to the Russian leader that real steps towards de-escalation regarding our energy and infrastructure are needed" and pointed out, in a message on social media, that contacts have already begun between delegations from Ukraine, the United States, and Russia to "analyze the preparations for the planned tripartite meeting in November."
The Ukrainian leader also stressed that "Finland and Norway, being countries that share a border with Russia, have a special interest in having solid and reliable security mechanisms," and detailed that during the conversation, "various formats of collaboration with partners in Europe were also discussed, which could be useful for continuing to support diplomacy, defense, and shared security."