The President of the Republic, Alexander Stubb, appeared in the first long interview on the Swedish SVT's Aktuellt news program and in an interview with Dagens Nyheter.
President Alexander Stubb will arrive next week for his first official state visit to Sweden. Under the visit SVT interviewed president in the first long interview on Tuesday, April 16.
Swedish television Currently– news program, Stubb was asked, among other things, about the relationship with Russia and the United States. Appearing calm, Stubb calmed down the Swedish audience after he finished.
“Ukraine is already the moral winner of the war,” said Stubb, when asked how confident he is that Ukraine can still win the war.
However, mental attitude alone is not enough. Stubb emphasized that the war is still going on and said that supporting Ukraine is now critically important.
On Sunday April 7. Stubb your bet in an interview with the US news channel CNN to the US Congress to approve a 60 billion dollar aid package for Ukraine. The arms aid package for Ukraine has been stuck in Congress for months.
In an interview with SVT, Stubb was asked about his attitude towards the former president of the United States Donald Trump's to talks about NATO countries that do not pay the alliance's required share of their defense spending. Trump expressed at his campaign rally on Saturday, April 11, that the United States should not protect such countries from Russian attack.
According to Stubb, the analysis must take into account the differences in the political rhetoric of cultures.
According to Stubb, Trump is passionate in his speeches. According to him, behind the heated phrases may be the message that Trump hopes that Europe invests in its own defense according to needs.
in Sweden The uncertain security situation in Europe gave birth at the beginning of the year the conversation about the possibility of war at home. To Finns, war talk might have seemed hasty. Perhaps also that there is no reason to play with the word war.
In an interview with SVT, President Stubb said that he has never seen Europe as united as in the past two years – despite the gravel voices coming from, for example, Hungary.
Even then, the president does not believe that the United States would withdraw from NATO or Europe.
Stubb expressed to the Swedish television viewers that there is no reason, let alone afford, to be in a hurry when you share a border of about 1,340 kilometers with a country like Russia.
Sometimes you have to worry, but according to the president, it is even more important to be prepared.
Stubb reminded that after two years, Russia still has not managed to win the war of aggression that it planned for a short time.
Similar Stubb's message was also conveyed by a Swedish newspaper on Wednesday Dagens Nyheterin in the interview. According to Stubb, the general rhetoric in Europe right now is too belligerent.
“Am I worried? Not as worried as many others publicly express. Why? Because we are prepared. Instead of talking about war – prepare for war, because then it won't happen,” says Stubb in an interview with the newspaper.
According to him, Europe and especially Finland are so prepared for the threat of war that “war is not worth it”. He believes the situation will calm down.
“There are those who believe that Russia is trying to test NATO's fifth article, but I find it hard to believe that this would happen,” Stubb says to DN.
DN asked in an interview with Stubb about the situation on the eastern border. According to him, the situation on the eastern border is stable, “thanks to the actions we have taken”. The government decided at the beginning of April that the land border crossings between Finland and Russia will remain closed until further notice.
According to Stubb, there are now around 1,300 “so-called asylum seekers” in Finland, who were arranged by Russia at the Finnish border. Stubb does not believe that people will try to cross the border through the forest when the snow and the cold subside.
“[Venäjän presidentti Vladimir] Putin seeks control. If people come across the border through the forest, Putin has no control. Because it would also mean that those fleeing military service in Russia could try to cross the border.”
So-called is being prepared in Finland conversion law, which could limit the reception of applications for international protection at the border in certain situations. The has been criticizedas the law would be in conflict with, among other things, international human rights treaties.
Stubb tells DN that he believes that the related international laws, or at least their interpretation, will be changed in the near future.
Republic the president's state visit will take place in Sweden on 23-24 April.
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