Russia ramps up rhetoric against Finland over its support for Ukraine
Photo: Finnish President Alexander Stubb (Getty Images)
Russia became significantly more aggressive toward Finland in 2025, particularly because of its support for Ukraine and its growing cooperation with NATO, according to the report of the Finnish government.
According to the report, Moscow reacted negatively to statements by Finnish President Alexander Stubb, who repeatedly emphasized Ukraine’s sovereignty in international debates and placed responsibility for the war on Russia.
In response, the Russian side used sarcasm and aggressive rhetoric in an attempt to downplay the significance of the Finnish leader’s position.
Finnish officials also believe the Kremlin’s harsher rhetoric may be linked to Russia’s difficult domestic situation.
The worsening economic conditions in Russia, the consequences of the war against Ukraine, and strikes on Russian oil infrastructure are putting additional pressure on the Kremlin. Against this backdrop, Moscow is increasingly resorting to threats and accusations against its opponents.
Russian propaganda
The document emphasizes that Russia also actively uses historical narratives for domestic propaganda, and any attempts to question them are perceived as hostile actions.
The report also notes that Russia regularly portrays NATO as a threat. In particular, Russian propaganda presents the Alliance’s military exercises as activity near Russia’s borders, even though many of them have been conducted in the same regions for a long time.
"The preparedness of Finland and other European countries, as well as civil defense measures, are also used as evidence of a military threat from the West, although these are routine preparedness measures that are in no way related to military exercises," the report concludes.
Earlier, Finnish President Alexander Stubb said that the escalation of the conflict in the Middle East could indirectly affect Russia’s war against Ukraine. According to him, the fighting could complicate Moscow’s military cooperation with Iran, which supplies weapons to Russia. He also believes it could affect negotiations.
At first, the next round of trilateral talks between Ukraine, Russia, and the United States, which had been planned for this week, was postponed at Washington’s proposal.
However, Volodymyr Zelenskyy later said that Ukraine and Türkiye are preparing to hold a new round of talks with the United States and Russia in a trilateral format.
US President Donald Trump’s Special Envoy, Steve Witkoff, also reported some progress in the negotiations. Speaking on CNBC, he said that settling Russia’s war against Ukraine will take more time than Washington had expected, but the United States hopes for a possible turning point.
