In a major break with Western European diplomatic norms, Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre held a direct phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin to urge an end to the war in Ukraine.
The leaders of Finland and Norway phoned Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to urge him to end the war in Ukraine, breaking with a longstanding practice among Western European leaders of shunning direct contact with the Kremlin.
The call by Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere was an attempt to influence the diplomatic process after US President Donald Trump shifted his position in favour of Russia and US ties with Ukraine hit their lowest point in 18 months.
Stoere said he and Stubb had spoken to Putin for about 90 minutes, and then to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
In a joint statement, they linked the initiative to planned peace discussions between Russian, Ukrainian and US officials in Abu Dhabi next month, their first since February.
Moscow and Kyiv remain far apart on how to end the war that began with Russia’s invasion in February 2022, and long-range airstrikes by both sides have increased this year while battle lines have remained largely static.
“The discussion (with Putin) was frank and substantive. We are neighboring 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,” Stubb said.
Speaking as neighboring states deeply impacted by regional security threats, the Nordic leaders pressed for de-escalation before immediately following up with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to brief him on the discussions.
The conversation marks one of the very few direct dialogues between Western-aligned European leaders and Putin since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, bucking the general trend of shunning direct Kremlin contact.
Following their frank exchange with Putin—which yielded no immediate concessions regarding Russia’s territorial objectives—Stubb and Store spoke directly with Zelenskiy to maintain transparency, acting as national leaders rather than speaking for the European Union as a whole.
The uncoordinated move drew swift criticism from some European corners, with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen calling it a “dangerous step that divides Europe” at a time when unified solidarity is deemed critical.
The calls served as a follow-up to recent high-level meetings in Oslo involving U.S. envoys, as international momentum builds toward potential trilateral peace talks expected in the coming weeks.
