Finnish President Alexander Stubb called on allies to increase economic pressure on Russia and supported the idea of a complete ban on maritime services for transporting Russian oil and coal, proposed by his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron.
He said this to journalists on Monday ahead of a meeting with the President of France at the Élysée Palace.
“We must continue to support Ukraine—militarily and economically. And we must continue to increase pressure on Russia. For example, through energy sanctions and a complete ban on providing maritime services for Russian oil and coal shipments,” Stubb stressed, backing Macron’s proposal.
He also emphasized that the years of this war should be counted correctly by adding eight to four, as it has been ongoing for 12 years.
“In my view, Putin will not win this war, but he cannot make peace. That is the current dilemma: he cannot win the war, yet he cannot make peace. For him, in my opinion, this is a strategic defeat. He wanted Ukraine to become Russian, but it has become European. Secondly, he did not want NATO to expand, yet now we have Finland and Sweden in the Alliance. Additionally, he wanted to reduce defense budgets, but now we are at the level of 5%,” he explained, describing Russia’s actions in Ukraine as both a military and economic defeat.
