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‘Peace Will Not Be Achieved Through Silence’: Finland and Norway Break Europe’s Taboo and Call Putin — Denmark Is Furious

For four years, Western Europe's rule has been simple: no calls to the Kremlin. On Tuesday, two of Russia's neighbours broke it together — a 90-minute call from Helsinki, prepared with Kyiv and Washington, ahead of US-mediated peace talks expected in Abu Dhabi next month. The Kremlin did not budge, and Copenhagen erupted.

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AI-generated illustration of two northern European government leaders at a desk in Helsinki speaking on a telephone, with a map of northern Europe on the wall behind them

Highlights

  • Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre called Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, October 27, urging him to end the war in Ukraine — breaking a longstanding Western European practice of shunning direct contact with the Kremlin
  • The joint call lasted 90 minutes and was held from Helsinki; the leaders spoke to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy afterwards, and Ukraine’s foreign minister said the call had been coordinated with Kyiv
  • The Kremlin’s readout showed no sign of compromise, insisting peace requires Russia’s “legitimate interests” to be “fully and unconditionally taken into account”
  • Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen criticised the initiative as uncoordinated — “I’m very sceptical about this Norwegian and Finnish initiative” — exposing a public split among Nordic allies
  • The call comes ahead of expected US-mediated peace talks in Abu Dhabi next month, and was the first direct contact between Putin and European leaders allied with Kyiv since Emmanuel Macron spoke with him in July last year

The call Europe wasn’t making

The leaders of Finland and Norway called Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to urge him to end the war in Ukraine, breaking with a longstanding practice among Western European leaders of shunning direct contact with the Kremlin (Reuters via DevDiscourse). The joint call by Stubb and Støre lasted 90 minutes and was held from Helsinki; Finland and Norway initiated it to discuss Russia’s war against Ukraine and the diplomatic push to end it (Times Now). Western media report the call was the first direct contact between Putin and European leaders allied with Kyiv since French President Emmanuel Macron spoke with him in July last year (NHK World).

The two leaders framed the move as a neighbour’s duty, not a European mission. Stubb said in a joint statement with Støre:

“The discussion (with Putin) was frank and substantive. 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,” Stubb said. (Reuters via DevDiscourse)

Støre added that the pair had “stressed the importance of de-escalation,” and both leaders stressed their strong support for Ukraine, which they said would continue (Reuters via DevDiscourse). Stubb said the leaders wanted to “convey messages directly regarding future negotiations,” adding that peace “will not be achieved through silence,” and Støre emphasised: “We’ve not set out to speak on behalf of anyone other than ourselves” (Times Now).

Coordinated with Kyiv — read out to Zelenskiy after

This was not a freelance initiative behind Ukraine’s back. The call was prepared after consultation with Ukraine and the United States, following a meeting in Oslo last week between Zelenskiy, the Nordic leaders and US special envoy Steve Witkoff (Times Now). The Nordic leaders spoke by phone to Putin and afterwards to Zelenskiy, according to a Zelenskiy aide (Reuters via DevDiscourse), and Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha told reporters the call had been coordinated with Ukraine (NHK World). Zelenskiy later confirmed Stubb and Støre briefed him afterwards and thanked them for their “active support,” while Sybiha called the call “the right approach” (Times Now). The timing is deliberate: the call was related to talks on a peace plan for Russia and Ukraine expected to take place next month in the United Arab Emirates, with the United States also taking part (NHK World), and the Kremlin had already said after the Putin–Witkoff talks that Russia was willing to resume US-mediated peace talks with Ukraine in November, for the first time since February (Reuters).

AI-generated illustration of a long conference table with name cards and small flags of Nordic countries under cold blue light, one chair pulled away from the table

No movement in Moscow — and a row in Copenhagen

The Kremlin’s readout gave nothing away. “It was emphasized that achieving a just and long-term peace is possible only if the legitimate interests of the Russian Federation are fully and unconditionally taken into account,” the Kremlin said, adding that EU and NATO countries’ “confrontational policies” were prolonging the hostilities (Reuters via DevDiscourse). Reuters’ own summary was blunt: the Kremlin’s readout did not suggest Putin had signalled any compromise from previously stated positions (Reuters via DevDiscourse).

The louder argument happened inside the alliance. Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen criticised Finland’s and Norway’s leaders on Tuesday after the joint call, saying they had gone “solo” (ABP News):

“I’m very sceptical about this Norwegian and Finnish initiative. It hasn’t been coordinated with any of the rest of us,” she told reporters while attending a meeting of Nordics leaders. “I honestly don’t know what those two countries think they can achieve with this.” (ABP News)

“I believe we should keep Europe united, rather than going it alone,” Frederiksen said (ABP News). Stubb and Støre responded that they had consulted Ukraine before initiating the call and stressed they represented their own countries, not Europe (ABP News).

AI-generated illustration of a grand diplomatic hall entrance in a desert city at dusk with motorcade cars arriving, suggesting peace talks in Abu Dhabi

What this episode actually tells us

First, the context is Washington, not just Moscow. Reuters notes the Nordic bid came at a time when US President Donald Trump has shifted his position in favour of Russia and US ties with Ukraine have hit their lowest point in 18 months (Reuters via DevDiscourse). Two of Russia’s neighbours looked at that landscape and decided Europe could not afford to be absent from the conversation that will decide their own security.

Second, the taboo is cracking unevenly. Denmark’s fury shows there is no European consensus for the new approach — Frederiksen’s complaint is procedural (no coordination) as much as substantive (ABP News). Al Jazeera’s explainer notes Stubb stressed that all Western allies were consulted on the initiative — a claim that sits awkwardly next to Copenhagen’s version, and one that will be tested at the next European table (Al Jazeera).

The bottom line: ninety minutes of talk moved nothing in Moscow — but they were never really the point. The call reopens a channel, puts two European capitals inside the process before Abu Dhabi, and reveals the price: a public crack in the united front Europe has presented since 2022. Whether that price buys influence or just division is the story of the next month.