Stubb says Trump shifting to 'stick' approach toward Putin
Photo: US President Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin (Getty Images)
US President Donald Trump is expected to increase pressure on Vladimir Putin, shifting from a "carrot" to a "stick" approach.
This was stated by Finnish President Alexander Stubb, according to Politico.
According to him, it is only a matter of time before the United States strikes Putin where it will hurt the most.
"Having seen that carrots rarely work with the Russians, he has moved to the stick stage," Stubb said. "Now it’s just a question of how big the stick is going to be."
The publication notes that this assessment stands in contrast to the skepticism in some European capitals, where Trump’s criticism of Putin has been dismissed as empty rhetoric.
Refined 'stick' for Putin
Stubb, who maintains personal contact with the US President through their shared passion for golf, reportedly has more reason to trust Trump’s intentions.
When asked what exactly the “stick” might be, Stubb joked that it could be a “club” — hinting at the broad range of tools at Trump’s disposal.
According to him, President Trump "is working if not around the clock, then every day with trying to end the war" and "has 14 clubs in his bag."
Possible measures reportedly include tougher sanctions, including secondary ones, higher tariffs, and more active use of US weapons capable of striking targets deep inside Russia.
"You don’t have to read ‘The Art of [the] Deal’ to understand the way in which President Trump negotiates," Stubb said. "It’s unconventional but it is quite results-oriented … If Putin after [meeting Trump for an Aug. 15 summit in] Alaska basically continues to kill civilians in Ukraine, President Trump is justifiably going to react."
Call for patience
Describing himself as a "realistic optimist," Stubb urged Ukraine’s supporters to remain patient.
"I have had the possibility to work with President Trump quite closely over the past few months,” he said. “Perhaps optimism is sometimes an intuition, but I think the facts on the ground right now speak that we are going in a better direction," he said.
Trump's stance on Putin
Donald Trump has increasingly voiced deep frustration with Vladimir Putin over his reluctance to end the war in Ukraine.
The US president even referred to Putin as a "paper tiger," a term used for someone who appears formidable but lacks real strength.
Trump has also reportedly grown tired of ongoing talks with Putin, which he believes have yielded no tangible results, admitting earlier that ending the war has proven far more difficult than he expected.
