Russian Official: Finland President's NATO Spending Justification Claim

MOSCOW, July 7. /TASS/. Finnish President Alexander Stubb’s statements about intensifying attacks on Russian territory are aimed at justifying NATO spending on supporting the Ukrainian armed forces to taxpayers, Russian Federation Council member from the Kherson Region Igor Kastyukevich told TASS.

According to him, in reality, only the achievement of the special military operation goals stated by the Kremlin will stop the conflict.

Earlier, Finnish President Alexander Stubb said in an interview with the British daily Financial Times that NATO countries supported Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory. According to him, intensifying attacks could supposedly help spur negotiations on the conflict resolution. "The Finnish president's statements in the British press are nothing more than a media plan for Western audiences. After all, the main sponsor of any event is not governments, but taxpayers, the people. That’s why they’re being bombarded with high-flown speeches like Stubb’s: ‘Let’s give Ukraine even more money, and together, we’ll finally defeat Russia.’ But that won't happen," Kastyukevich said.

He added that neither Stubb nor other Western officials take into account the mentality of Russians, who "can do anything except retreat." The parliamentarian is confident that only one thing can urge Russia to sit down at the negotiating table, and that is the achieved goals of the special military operation.

He also noted that the Finnish president doesn’t fully understand the consequences of his statements. "Supporting strikes means bearing full responsibility, including for the deaths of civilians in our country. Moreover, these are crimes with no statute of limitations. Responsibility for them cannot end with his term in office," Kastyukevich emphasized.