Finnish President Alexander Stubb defended the phone call he and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre made to Vladimir Putin this week, after criticism from some anti-Moscow hawks in Europe, according to RT.

Stubb said it was important to hear firsthand the Russian leader's view of the root causes of the Ukraine conflict and described the direct exchange of opinions as a turning point. According to him, the channel was reopened at Kyiv's request, with messages from Zelensky relayed to Putin.