Finland's Stubb and Norway's Støre Call Putin, Then Zelensky

On Tuesday, October 27, Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre held a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on their own initiative, according to a statement from Stubb's office cited by European Pravda.

The office said the conversation followed up a meeting held in Oslo on October 20. "Consultations with Ukraine were held in preparation for the call," the statement said. The two leaders wanted to discuss Russia's war against Ukraine and the diplomatic efforts aimed at ending it and promoting peace and stability in Europe.

"As leaders of our countries"

The statement stressed that Stubb and Støre took part in the call "as leaders of their countries and did not act as representatives of Europe." They said Finland and Norway will continue their long-standing support for Ukraine, and that the war must end and negotiations continue.

"The discussion was frank and businesslike. We are neighbours of Russia. How the war ends will affect the security of Finland and Norway, and more broadly the security of all of Europe. Direct dialogue is needed to end the war," Stubb said. Støre said the two had stressed "the importance of de-escalation" during the call.

Zelensky on the line

According to Zelensky's adviser Dmytro Lytvyn, the Ukrainian president was holding a conversation with Stubb and Støre at the time of the report.

Earlier, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said Europe should be involved in talks between Russian, Ukrainian and American officials. Media have also reported that Russia may try to use a new round of peace talks to seek concessions from NATO. More in our Politics section.