Kremlin Brands Finland’s Stubb ‘Pro-War’

The Kremlin on Tuesday criticized Finnish President Alexander Stubb for supporting Ukrainian strikes deep inside Russian territory, saying his remarks confirmed that he belonged to the “party of war”.

During a visit to Kyiv on Monday, Stubb said Ukraine’s partners should help it expand its ability to strike deep inside Russia, including e-commerce warehouses. He described the attacks as a “sensible military strategy”, arguing that they increase the cost of the war for Moscow and help persuade ordinary Russians that it is time to end the conflict.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Stubb’s remarks had come as a surprise to Moscow and accused the Finnish leader, along with British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, of wanting the war in Ukraine to continue.

Peskov noted that just a few weeks earlier, Stubb had spoken of the need to normalize relations with Russia sooner or later.

Finland joined NATO in 2023, ending seven decades of military non-alignment and roughly doubling the length of the alliance's border with Russia.

(Reuters, bak)