Stubb: Ceasefire between Russia, Ukraine unlikely to come before spring

A ceasefire in Ukraine is unlikely before the spring and European allies need to keep up support despite a corruption scandal that has engulfed Kyiv, President Alexander Stubb of Finland told The Associated Press, Report informs.

Europe, meanwhile, will require ‘'sisu,' a Finnish word meaning endurance, resilience and grit, to get through the winter months, he said, as Russia continues its hybrid attacks and information war across the continent.

"I can explain to President Trump what Finland went through or how I see the situation on the battlefield, or how do you deal with (Russian President Vladimir) Putin? And then, you know, if he accepts one out of 10 ideas, that's good," he said.

Stubb told AP that Zelenskyy must deal quickly with allegations of kickbacks and embezzlement, saying the scandal plays into the hands of Russia. Nonetheless, he urged European leaders to look at boosting financial and military support for Kyiv, which is also facing creeping gains by Russia on the battlefield.

"I'm not very optimistic about achieving a ceasefire or the beginning of peace negotiations, at least this year," Stubb said, adding it would be good to "get something going" by March.

The three big questions on the road to a ceasefire are security guarantees for Ukraine, rebuilding its economy and coming to some sort of understanding about territorial claims, he said.

To bring peace to Ukraine, Stubb said, Trump and European leaders need to maximize pressure on Russia and on Putin in order to change his strategic thinking. Putin "basically wants to deny the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine," aims that have not altered since the war began nearly four years ago, Stubb said.

To do this, he suggested using tools such as the hundreds of billions of dollars in frozen Russian assets held in Europe as collateral to fund Ukraine, as well as increasing military pressure on Moscow.