Finland and Norway's leaders hold Putin call, drawing doubts from Denmark and Sweden

Summary

Nordic unity cracked after the leaders of Finland and Norway held a 90-minute phone call with Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, October 27. Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre opened the direct line to Putin, according to POLITICO, and the Danish and Swedish prime ministers publicly cast doubt on the diplomatic overture, per Euronews. The New York Times reports that the outreach was part of an effort to push talks to end the war in Ukraine, though it was not welcomed by all European leaders. POLITICO reports that the call drew criticism from some fellow European leaders even though Ukraine backs the efforts, and it describes Europe's united front on Ukraine as showing cracks.

Timeline

1. Euronews

   27 Oct 2026, 16:20 UTCSource ↗

   Euronews reports that the leaders of Finland and Norway held a 90-minute phone call with Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, and that the Danish and Swedish prime ministers publicly cast doubt on the overture.

2. The New York Times

   27 Oct 2026, 20:49 UTCSource ↗

   The New York Times reports that the diplomatic outreach to Putin was part of an effort to push talks to end the war in Ukraine, though it was not welcomed by all European leaders.

3. POLITICO

   28 Oct 2026, 05:05 UTCSource ↗

   POLITICO reports that Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre opened a direct line to Vladimir Putin, drawing criticism from some fellow European leaders even as Ukraine backs their efforts.