Overview
- In his New Year address, Alexander Stubb said peace in Ukraine is closer than ever and vowed to do everything possible to protect Ukraine’s independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity.
- Dmitry Medvedev wrote on X that Finland is "already paying for its russophobia," saying citizens are "paying the bill" in response to Stubb’s remarks.
- Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov argued that Europeans are absent from a Ukraine peace process because they seek a "strategic defeat" for Russia.
- Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov earlier accused Finnish elites of "animal russophobia," citing wartime cooperation with Nazi Germany and participation in the blockade of Leningrad.
- Helsinki University professor Tuomas Malinen wrote that most Finns do not support Stubb’s Russia policy and claimed he lacks a mandate to make such statements.