Finland’s President Alexander Stubb claims Russia aims to prolong the war until at least autumn to maximize territorial gains, with no signs of peace talks.
Stubb Highlights Russia’s Strategy of Delay
Finland’s President Alexander Stubb stated in an interview with *Helsingin Sanomat* that Russia wants to continue the war for at least several months to maximize territorial acquisitions. He emphasized that there are no signals from Moscow indicating a willingness to negotiate a ceasefire or peace agreement with Ukraine. Stubb also expressed skepticism about a potential meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, attributing this to what he called Russia’s “tactic of delay.”
Trump as the Sole Peacebroker, Stubb Asserts
Stubb underscored that the only person capable of compelling Putin to pursue peace is U.S. President Donald Trump, though he noted Trump has yet to take decisive actions such as imposing broad sanctions against Russia. “We hope we are close to the moment when Trump loses patience with Putin, as it would contribute to a peaceful resolution,” Stubb said, adding that Finland’s small size makes it possible to influence Trump’s negotiation stance. “Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t,” he remarked.
Washington Summit and the Zelenskyy-Putin Talks
Alexander Stubb was among the European leaders who attended the Washington summit with Zelenskyy and Trump. The next step, however, seemed to be the potential meeting between Zelenskyy and Putin. White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt confirmed on Tuesday that various possible locations for such a meeting are being discussed, while the U.S. administration is working to ensure negotiations take place. Despite this, the prospect of direct talks between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders continues to appear increasingly distant. On Friday, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated that no meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy is planned until the agenda for a possible summit is finalized. In Kyiv, this was interpreted as another example of Russia’s strategic stalling. Zelenskyy has repeatedly claimed that Russia is actively working to prevent such a meeting. Trump, reacting to the Kremlin’s hesitation, stated he would give Putin “a few more weeks” but did not clarify whether Russia should fear sanctions.
Source: Gazeta, https://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/donald-trump#anchorLink, https://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/wiadomosci/0, https://wiadomosci.gazeta.pl/siergiej-lawrow#anchorLink, https://next.gazeta.pl/next/7
