"April 20 Would Be Good for an Unconditional Full Ceasefire"
Alexander Stubb, President of Finland, revealed that he suggested to U.S. President Donald Trump that a deadline should be set for a ceasefire in the Russia-Ukraine war, proposing April 20, which marks three months since President Trump's inauguration. He also reported that President Trump is losing patience with Russia.
According to the British daily The Guardian, Reuters, and Finnish broadcaster YLE on the 30th (local time), President Stubb, who met President Trump in the U.S. the previous day, made these remarks during his visit to London, UK.
He said, "April 20 would be a good time for an unconditional full ceasefire," adding, "A deadline is necessary, and it is Easter, as well as the third month since President Trump's inauguration." President Trump's inauguration date is January 20.
President Stubb stated that President Trump is losing patience with Russia and conveyed that Trump plans to take broad actions if Russia does not accept the ceasefire. He said, "If Russia does not accept or breaks it, there must be consequences," adding, "Those consequences should be maximum sanctions, and we will continue to apply pressure until the 20th and then see what happens."
Earlier, on the 19th, he held a summit with Volodymyr Zelensky, President of Ukraine, who visited Helsinki. At that time, President Stubb said, "If Russia does not accept (an unconditional ceasefire), pressure must be increased to bring them to the negotiating table."
President Stubb made a surprise visit to Florida, USA, the previous day and spent nine hours with President Trump, including playing a round of golf. At this meeting, President Trump expressed hope for strengthened cooperation between the two countries and announced plans to purchase a large number of Finnish icebreakers.
In an interview with NBC in the U.S. on the same day, President Trump warned that if he feels that Russia is to blame for preventing peace negotiations in Ukraine, he would impose secondary tariffs of 25 to 50% on all Russian crude oil. He also said he was "very angry and frustrated" with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
On the same day, President Stubb said that when President Trump asked him whether Putin could be trusted, he replied that he could not be trusted. He also mentioned that before his visit to the U.S., he had phone calls with President Zelensky, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, leaders of neighboring Nordic countries, and European Union (EU) leadership.
He is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Starmer on the 31st to discuss the Ukraine issue.
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