Are you concerned that [the war in West Asia] could spread? After the attack by the U.S. on an Iranian ship in the Indian Ocean, are you concerned that this is now headed towards a world war, and do you see an end game?

I would argue, ever since Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine, [conflicts] have become regional and we’ve seen that trend grow. Israel-Palestine, now Israel-U.S.-Iran, and then Iran versus the Gulf states. We should try to avoid to make this war into a global conflict, and use all de-escalatory means necessary at this stage. The less states are hit by this, the better. But the truth, of course, is that we can’t be ostriches and put our heads in the sand. The price of oil will have an impact. The closing of the Hormuz Strait will have an impact on global trade. We’re all affected by this, but now we just need to contain it.

Spain, France and today, Slovenia have very clearly condemned the U.S.-Israel attacks, which were the first strike in this war. Yet countries, including Finland, have not. Is Europe divided over what has happened?

No, I think it is as united as Europe is. I mean, it’s 27 states. Even on the war in Russia, we have disparate voices from, for instance, Hungary and partially Slovakia. So European foreign policy is never perfect. But if the question was, do we back America or Iran, I think the answer is very clear, we back America.

Despite the fact that U.S.-Israel cast the first strike?

Despite that fact, and you can, of course, see the United Kingdom and France allowing the United States to use their bases for the strike. So in that sense, I think it’s quite clear where their sympathies are.

You discussed the war in Ukraine with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and there was a reference to it in the joint statement. Was there anything you requested India to do?

For a country like Finland, the key conflict is Russia’s war of aggression in Ukraine. So I was able to explain to Prime Minister Modi why there are security concerns about Russian aggression in the region, I think both of us were very focused on a path towards peace. India is a peace-loving nation, and India is one of the few that can talk to both Russia and to Ukraine on an equal footing and with equal respect from both leaders.

The U.S. has announced it is giving India a 30-day waiver from sanctions to buy Russian oil. How do you respond to that?

(Smiles) You know, I’m a humble President from a country of 5.6 million people. I’m not going to intervene in the international relations or diplomacy between India and the United States.

Do you hope India will continue to decrease Russian oil imports as it has for some months?

I don’t give advice to a leader from a country that has 7% annual growth rate and a population of a little bit less than 1.5 billion. I can only explain what the impact of oil purchases are for the Russian war machinery, but it’s not my decision, it’s for India to decide itself.

The Finnish government announced it is preparing to allow the acquisition of nuclear weapons. Why this major change in position?

This is not about Finland acquiring nuclear weapons. We have no such plans, and Finland will not become a nuclear state. It is about erasing an anomaly in Finnish legislation (from 1987). We’re bringing our legislation to the same level as the other Nordic states. And we are dismantling any impediments to us being a part of NATO’s nuclear planning. It’s not against anyone. It’s for our own security.

I wanted to ask about what’s seen as double standards in this war: the U.S. and Israel have carried out strikes to take out the head of another state, invade the territory, do away with the sovereignty in a manner that has not been condemned as much by you or by other members of the European Union as in the past…

I think it is quite clear that Israel and the United States are working outside the framework of traditional international law. It is also clear that building nuclear weapons in Iran is against international law, and the attacks that Iran has launched on 10 states in the Middle East and the Gulf and also in Europe with Cyprus, and Turkey and Azerbaijan are also outside the scope of international law.

At the Raisina Dialogue inaugural speech you called for a “New Delhi moment” conference to discuss the new multilateral world order. Do you suggest that the United Nations should be replaced?

No, we need to revise the United Nations. We need to have multilateral institutions reflect the world of 2026, not the world of 1945 and that’s why countries like India need to have a permanent seat in the UN Security Council. That’s why the power balance in the financial institutions such as the IMF, the World Bank and the WTO needs to be changed and revamped.

You praised India for its non-alignment and multi-alignment since Independence. Why do you think that has worked for India?

Because your geographic location is different and your size is very different, you’re able to project power in a way in which a small country cannot. For me, power is influence. For you, power is soft, hard, smart and influence. So there’s a big difference.

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, senior Ukrainian negotiator Rustem Umerov and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz meet with U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR), U.S. Air Force General Alexus Grynkewich, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Berlin, Germany on December 14, 2025.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Finland’s new president Alexander Stubb said that the Nordic country is facing a new era after becoming a NATO member. FIle photo
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Alexander Stubb was sworn on March 1 as Finland’s new president and said that the Nordic country “is facing a new era” after becoming a NATO member — something he will demonstrate by making his first foreign trip to inspect the military alliance’s drill in neighbouring Norway’s Arctic region.

The 12-day NATO exercise is called Nordic Response and begins on Sunday. Mr. Stubb said that he will go for one day, on March 7.

Also read: Explained | On Finland’s journey to join NATO

“If someone had told me two years ago that the president of Finland would make his first working visit to NATO exercises a week after his inauguration, I wouldn’t have believed it,” Mr. Stubb told reporters at a news conference in the seaside Presidential Palace in Helsinki following inauguration ceremonies.

The 55-year-old former prime minister replaced President Sauli Niinistö, a highly popular leader who held the job for two six-year terms.

Mr. Stubb, a conservative, was elected head of state in a narrow February 11 runoff victory against independent candidate and former Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto of a left-leaning party.

Also Read | Sweden’s NATO accession ends era of go-it-alone security

Mr. Stubb has held several government posts, including foreign minister, and led the Finnish government in 2014-2015. He and Mr. Niinistö arrived together in high hats at the 200-seat Eduskunta legislature for transition ceremonies that included inspection of a military guard.

Mr. Stubb took his oath in Finnish and Swedish, Finland’s two official languages, becoming the country’s 13th president since it gained independence from the Russian Empire in 1917.

Finland joined NATO in April following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. Finland has the military alliance’s longest land border with Russia — 1,340 kilometres (830 miles) — and is one of the most active European providers of military and civilian aid to Ukraine.

Mr. Stubb said in his speech to lawmakers that “as a result of allying ourselves militarily and joining NATO, we have taken the final step into the Western community of values” to which Finland has belonged “in spirit throughout its independence.”

The president of Finland, a nation of 5.6 million people, holds executive power in formulating foreign and security policy together with the government. The president also commands the military.

In remarks at the Presidential Palace to the diplomatic corps, Mr. Stubb noted that “we live in an era of unrest and disorder.”

“The things that were supposed to bring us together — interdependence, trade, technology, energy, information, and currency — are now too often tearing us apart,” Mr. Stubb noted. “As a result, in my mind, we are now looking at a landscape which is shaped by pretty much three dynamics, which are cooperation, competition and conflicts. “

Mr. Stubb said that as Finland’s new head of state, “I will do my best to make sure that conflicts are translated into competition, and that this competition provides genuine opportunities for cooperation.”

Mr. Stubb is expected to remain above the fray of day-to-day politics and stay out of domestic political disputes while acting as a moral leader of the nation. Among other duties, the president appoints the prime minister and Cabinet members.

Mr. Niinistö said in his speech that “there is concern about the future of NATO,” and referred to a comment by former U.S. President Donald Trump, the front-runner for the Republican Party’s nomination this year, that he once warned a NATO ally that he “would encourage” Russia “to do whatever the hell they want” to countries in the alliance that don’t spend enough on defense.

Explained | What is the latest row between Trump and NATO?

“The comment ‘they must pay their bills’ was probably drafted for domestic use,” Mr. Niinistö said. “It is high time to awaken to securing the state of peace, in other words, to strengthen ourselves.”

Speaking to Mr. Stubb, Mr. Niinistö said, “I wish you strength and wisdom in these unpredictable times.”

Until recently a professor at the European University Institute in Florence, Italy, Mr. Stubb holds a doctorate in international relations from the London School of Economics.