– Our relations with Russia have changed permanently. There is no going back to the old daysbut in the long run we will have to find a way to live with our neighbor – said the president Alexander Stubb in Helsinki during the annual meeting of Finnish ambassadors.
– There is a regime in Russiawhich is waging an unlawful war, but “there were various episodes in its history,” he said. “I hope that Russia will be able to live with itself in the future.” without posing a threat to your neighbors – added the President of Finland.
He also stressed that Finland, which in 2023 joined NATOcannot conduct its policy only through the prism of relations with Russia, with which the country has approximately 1,340 km of border.
– The priority of our foreign and security policy is Ukraine. It is in our interest that she wins the war and achieves the just and lasting peace that is expected, he said.
President calls for 'restraint' on hybrid attacks
A new formal line adopted by the president and the government foreign policy according to him, it is “value-based realism” and the main goal is “protection of independence and territorial integrity and preventing the descent into armed conflict.”
Stubb, who took office this spring, also called for maintaining “restraint”when it comes to any kind of reaction to hybrid attacks by Russia. – We should not discuss everything, but make sure that these operations fail – he added. He admitted that Russia's goal is to “shake Finnish society” and the actions that serve this purpose are of a “continuous nature”.
In the summer, Finland experienced a series of burglaries into water supply infrastructure facilitiesincluding water towers and water distribution switchboards. As a result of cutting the supporting cables A 70-meter cell phone mast was also knocked down.
The media commented that these could have been acts of sabotage. The services did not officially confirm this, but according to Prime Minister Petteri Orpo in these cases “it cannot be ruled out” hybrid activities. The head of government, however, warned against drawing hasty conclusions before the cases are thoroughly investigated.
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