A 90-minute phone call between Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Vladimir Putin about possible talks to end the war in Ukraine has caused divisions among European countries, the website infohub.kz reports.
According to NUR.KZ, citing Bild, Copenhagen said the initiative was not coordinated with NATO partners. The conversation was initially expected to last about 20 minutes but ended up running for an hour and a half — and, according to the Financial Times, Putin spent most of that time lecturing his interlocutors on medieval Slavic history.
It was the Kremlin chief's first direct conversation with the leaders of European countries backing Ukraine since a phone contact with French President Emmanuel Macron in July 2025.
Stubb and Støre said they acted on behalf of their own countries, not all of Europe. As neighbours of Russia, they said, they should be able to convey their position directly to Moscow. Before the call they met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump's special envoy Steve Witkoff. After speaking with Putin, both leaders contacted Zelensky again.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen was sceptical of the initiative. She said there are no signs that Russia is ready for peace and that European countries should act together rather than take separate diplomatic steps. Norway's prime minister, for his part, insists that allies were informed about the call in advance.