According to the Financial Times, Russian President Vladimir Putin's negotiations with Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and Finnish President Alexander Stubb did not follow the scenario expected by the Scandinavian and Finnish leaders. The Russian head of state devoted a significant portion of the conversation to his own interpretation of medieval Slavic history, while discussing pressing issues and ways to end the war took up much less time.
First Contact with Ukraine's Allies in a Year
According to the publication, this was Putin's first contact with any of Ukraine's European allies since last July, when he spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron. As Stubb told the Finnish media, the conversation was originally scheduled for less than 30 minutes, but it stretched to an hour and a half. According to three sources familiar with the negotiations, instead of a substantive discussion on ways to end the conflict, the Russian leader spent a long time outlining what the Kremlin calls the 'root causes of the conflict.'
Historical Excursions Instead of Ceasefire Discussions
FT sources noted that the issue of an immediate ceasefire, which Ukraine insists upon, was practically not raised during the meeting. The leaders of Norway and Finland, according to sources, deliberately did not interrupt Putin's historical excursions to gauge how genuinely ready he is for dialogue with Europe. This approach, the publication assesses, once again demonstrated the difficulties Europe faces when trying to gain leverage over future peace talks with Russia.
Ideological Context: From 2022 Speeches to 'Genetic Arguments'
Putin's historical views are known to have become one of the key ideological justifications for the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022: a few days before the attack, he delivered an hour-long televised speech. A similar historical excursion about medieval Slavic rulers, sources say, was also delivered during the summit with US President Donald Trump last August. Last Thursday, Putin also referred to 'recent genetic studies,' claiming that Russians and Ukrainians are one people, and appealed to his own vision of Russia's historical development to support his words.
Oslo and Helsinki's Stance and Plans for Abu Dhabi
In a joint statement, Stubb and Støre emphasized that they sought to personally convey their positions to Putin regarding the upcoming negotiations, which they intend to help end the war. Such talks are planned for November in Abu Dhabi. Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed Norway and Finland's plan regarding talks with Putin and commented on the Russian leader's new demand concerning NATO.
Thus, the 'three-on-one' meeting served primarily as a diagnostic tool for Europe: the Scandinavian and Finnish leaders managed to receive a direct signal about how the Russian leader is ready (or not ready) to discuss ending the war, while the conditions for a ceasefire itself remained outside the scope of the conversation.
