Finland's President Alexander Stubb and Norway's Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre held a rare joint phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, discussing the war in Ukraine and stressing the need for de-escalation amid what they described as the conflict's "enormous human and material costs."
Rare direct contact between EU leaders and Putin
The call, scheduled for 20 minutes, lasted over an hour and a half. The two Nordic leaders emphasised the importance of de-escalation in the war. Putin reportedly told them that peace is only possible if "Russia's interests are fully and unconditionally taken into account."
It is the first time since July last year that Putin has held direct talks with leaders of a European country. The two leaders said they had not spoken on behalf of "Europe as a whole" during the call.
Leaders brief Zelensky after the call
President Stubb and Prime Minister Støre spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the hours afterwards, with Kyiv having been notified of the call in advance.
In comments released on Tuesday afternoon, President Stubb said: "The discussion was frank and substantive. We are neighbouring countries to Russia. The outcome of this war will have a direct impact on our and the broader European security. Ending the war requires direct discussions."
Prime Minister Støre 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."
Russia plays down significance of the call
Russia's Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attempted to play down the significance of the call, telling pro-Kremlin media: "Today, at their request, President Putin spoke by phone with the Prime Minister of Norway and the President of Finland. I haven't seen a specific recording yet, but apparently nothing new was said. This only shows the desire of Europeans to squeeze into the negotiation process. Although with what positions to squeeze into this process is a big question. So far we do not see a change in the approach of Europe."
The phone conversation comes ahead of trilateral peace talks scheduled to take place between the US, Ukraine, and Russia in Abu Dhabi in the first half of November. The summit will feature high-level officials from each country, with the US expected to send Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Donald Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner. Ukraine's delegation includes presidential Chief of Staff Kyrylo Budanov and National Security Adviser Rustem Umerov, while the Russian side includes the head of military intelligence Admiral Igor Kostyukov.
