'Putin cannot be trusted' — Nordic, Baltic countries issue joint statement supporting Ukraine's sovereignty
The Nordic-Baltic Eight nations on Aug. 16 issued a joint statement in support of Ukraine's sovereignty and a just end to Russia's full-scale war.
The statement followed U.S. President Donald Trump's and Russian President Vladimir Putin's summit in Alaska, where the two leaders failed to agree to a ceasefire but reportedly discussed a plan to trade unoccupied Ukrainian lands for a peace deal.
"We remain steadfast in our support to Ukraine and to efforts, including by President Trump, to end the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine," the joint statement reads.
"To achieve a just and lasting peace the next step must be together with Ukraine. Only Ukraine can make decisions concerning its future."
The Nordic-Baltic Eight is a regional bloc that consists of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, and Sweden. Many of the countries share borders with Russia and are among Europe's staunchest supporters of robust security guarantees for Ukraine.
"Experience has shown that Putin cannot be trusted," the statement says. "Ultimately it is Russia's responsibility to end its blatant violations of international law. Russia's aggression and imperialist ambitions are the root causes of this war."
Putin regularly invokes the so-called "root causes" of his own invasion to press for maximalist demands in Ukraine and retroactively justify the violation of international law. He referred to root causes again alongside Trump, saying these issues would have to be addressed in order for Russia to agree to any peace deal.
Instead of treating Putin as the aggressor, Trump was happy to join Putin in placing the blame for the war on former U.S. President Joe Biden. Russia's role as invader was downplayed, and Trump came out of the meeting saying he no longer thought additional sanctions on Moscow were needed.
The Nordic-Baltic statement unequivocally labeled Russia as the aggressor and called for a ceasefire, "credible security guarantees," the release of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia, and commitments from Ukraine's allies to prevent future Russian attacks.
It also insisted that Russia has no right to veto Ukraine's path to NATO or the European Union.
"We stand firm in our unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty, independence, and territorial integrity," the statement read.
President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the bloc for their support in a post on Telegram, saying Ukraine welcomed their "principled statement."
"All of these points are important to achieve a truly sustainable and reliable peace," he wrote.
