Kremlin hopes Finland’s new president will maintain balanced approach in ties with Russia

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - The Kremlin on Monday said it hopes new Finnish President Alexander Stubb will maintain a balanced approach to his country’s relations with Russia.

“We still retain hope that the new head of state, having the opportunity to receive all the information, will still have a more balanced approach to the topic of Russian-Finnish relations,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in a press briefing in Moscow.

Expressing that the election of a new president is a “sovereign matter for the people of Finland,” Peskov said Russia, consequently, can only respect the choice made by the Finnish people.

“Each time we express the hope that the new head of state will be a supporter of the development of our bilateral relations. Unfortunately, we cannot use this part of the standard phrase, because the position on the exclusion of some kind of dialogue and on the development of our bilateral relations has been outlined in advance,” Peskov further said.

Commenting on Russia’s chances of congratulating Stubb on his election, Peskov recalled Finland’s classification as an “unfriendly country” by Moscow and the Finnish president’s statements, which he described “very, very unfriendly in nature.”

Stubb, who was a former prime minister, became the Nordic country’s 13th president after defeating former Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto in Sunday’s election by securing 51.6% of the vote, according to local media.​​​​​​​

- Russia seeks assurances from Armenia on accession to Rome Statute

About Armenian Premier Nikol Pashinyan's remarks on Russian President Vladimir Putin's possible visit to Armenia -- after the country’s accession to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court -- Peskov said that this can only have a negative impact on bilateral ties.

“Of course, it is very important here to receive certain assurances from our Armenian partners, this issue remains to be resolved within the framework of a bilateral dialogue, which is what we are committed to,” Peskov said.

During an interview with The Telegraph aired on Sunday, Pashinyan neither confirmed nor denied that Putin will be arrested should he visit Armenia, commenting on a question on whether Yerevan will do so after having formally joined the Rome Statute on Feb. 1.

“There are various opinions and legal analyses on that topic, and in particular, the lawyers who say that the current heads of state have immunity, insurmountable immunity, due to their status are not just a few. I mean, it's a legal issue, not a political issue that I have to discuss and respond to,” he said.