Norwegian Prime Minister and Finnish President Discuss Ending War in Ukraine with Putin

Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere had a telephone conversation with Russian leader Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, October 27, about efforts to end the war in Ukraine. The initiative for the conversation belonged to the two European leaders, who discussed the subject in consultation with Ukraine, writes politico.eu.

"The discussion was frank and substantive. We are neighboring countries with Russia. The outcome of this war will have a direct impact on our security and that of Europe in general. Ending the war requires direct discussions," Stubb said in a statement.

For his part, the Norwegian Prime Minister said that European leaders had stressed the importance of de-escalating the situation. He drew attention to the huge human and material costs of the war, the consequences of which will be felt for generations.

The two leaders are staunch supporters of Ukraine and did not participate in the discussion as official representatives of Europe as a whole.

The call comes at a sensitive time as US President Donald Trump pushes for a peace deal. Talks between the United States, Russia and Ukraine are planned for next month in Abu Dhabi.

Russia has frequently accused European governments of fueling the war by arming Ukraine and refusing to talk to Moscow.

Their position was in contrast to that of US President Donald Trump, who has spoken with Putin and tried – so far unsuccessfully – to mediate a peace agreement.

Stoere and Stubb met last week in Oslo with US special envoy Steve Witkoff and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, a day before Witkoff met with Putin in St. Petersburg.

The Kremlin said, after the Putin-Witkoff talks, that Russia was willing to resume US-mediated peace talks with Ukraine in November, for the first time since February.