Finnish President: Europe could offer to help Trump on Iran — if he backs Ukraine
The President of Finland believes that Europe could offer Donald Trump military assistance to clear the Strait of Hormuz in exchange for full U.S. support for Ukraine.
Alexander Stubb made this statement during a speech at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House, in London, according to Ukrinform, citing Politico.
“I think that’s a very good idea... No, I think that’s actually a really good idea,” he said, commenting on the possibility of such an option.
Stubb added that he would consider this proposal in more detail together with his team.
According to him, a prolonged war in Iran could negatively impact the situation surrounding Ukraine, particularly due to rising global energy prices, which increase Russia’s export revenues.
“TThe Russian economy was actually doing extremely badly a couple of weeks back, now it’s bouncing back,” noted the Finnish president.
In addition, Stubb pointed out that the United States’ use of a large number of interceptor missiles to counter Iranian attacks reduces the resources available to Ukraine.
Overall, in his view, the war in the Middle East is diverting attention from peace talks regarding Ukraine.
“I hope the peace negotiations on Ukraine don’t collapse like the negotiations between Iran and the U.S. did," Stubb said. "But time will tell,” Stubb remarked.
He added that he has no illusions about his influence on Trump: “I have no illusions about who can convince President Trump on anything… If I get one idea out of 10 in on Ukraine, I think it’s good.”
As reported by Ukrinform, Stubb stated that the reluctance of European leaders to respond to Trump’s request to help protect the Strait of Hormuz is due to the fact that the U.S. did not consult with its allies before launching military action against Iran.
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