Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre has provided further details about his phone call with Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Russian President Vladimir Putin during a brief meeting with journalists in Helsinki.
Støre and Stubb had initially been allocated just 20 minutes to speak with Putin, but the conversation ultimately lasted 90 minutes. Støre described it as “substantive, focused on the issues at hand and professional,” The Guardian reports.
“Most of what he said was already known — he [Putin] reiterated his views on how the conflict has evolved since 2014, and we expressed our positions. These are familiar views, which we were able to acknowledge and respond to,” Støre said.
The talks addressed possible measures to tackle the most urgent issues, including attacks on energy infrastructure and developments in the Black Sea.
However, Støre acknowledged that “significant differences remain in our respective positions,” while reiterating Norway’s continued support for Ukraine.
“We stand with Ukraine, defend its right to self-defence, and emphasise the need for a diplomatic path to bring this war to a sustainable and just end,” he said.
Støre also stressed that he and Stubb had spoken solely on behalf of their own countries, “and nobody else.”
Responding to criticism from Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen over the phone call, he said that “all our partners and allies were informed in advance and received a detailed briefing afterwards.”
Pushing back further against the criticism, he added:
“If anyone assumes that the current situation — in which communication between the US administration and Moscow serves as the only channel for discussing Ukraine outside Ukraine itself — is the only way, then they are entitled to that view. I believe it is important that other voices are heard as well.”
Støre also highlighted the importance of the meeting in Abu Dhabi, which had initially been agreed upon following consultations in Oslo organised by him and Stubb.
During a brief section of the press conference conducted in English, Støre again focused on countering Frederiksen’s criticism.
“I believe that talking and conveying the right messages is not wrong. Today, these messages are coming from the US administration; that is the only thing reaching Moscow. So now there are also voices from two neighbouring countries, speaking on behalf of Finland and Norway not on behalf of others, but … fully in line with the Coalition of the Willing, which shares the same position on the nature of this war and how it should end.”
