The leaders of Finland and Norway phoned Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, 27 October 2026, to urge him to end the war in Ukraine, according to Reuters. The call broke with a longstanding practice among Western European leaders of avoiding direct contact with the Kremlin.
Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store spoke to Putin for about 90 minutes, according to Reuters, and then spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. In a joint statement, they linked the initiative to planned peace discussions between Russian, Ukrainian and United States officials in Abu Dhabi next month.
Stubb described the discussion as frank and substantive, according to Reuters. He said: 'We are neighbouring countries to Russia. The outcome of this war will have a direct impact on our and the broader European security. Ending the war requires direct discussions.' Store said the two leaders had stressed the importance of de-escalation and voiced strong support for Ukraine.
According to Reuters, the Kremlin's readout did not suggest any softening of Putin's position. It said a just and long-term peace was possible only if Russia's legitimate interests were fully taken into account, and criticised the policies of EU and NATO countries.
Stubb later told Finnish journalists that all Western allies had been consulted and that Ukraine had sought a new communications channel, according to Reuters. Moscow and Kyiv remain far apart on how to end the war, which began with Russia's invasion in February 2022, while battle lines have remained largely static this year.
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