The UK and Finland are “tied hip-to-hip” on Nato, Finnish president Alexander Stubb has said after meeting Sir Keir Starmer in Downing Street.
Finland, which joined Nato in April 2023, has a border of more than 800 miles with Russia and applied to join the military alliance shortly after Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
A red carpet was rolled out on the steps of No 10 on Monday afternoon for the Finnish president, who also met US President Donald Trump on Saturday.
Addressing media inside No 10, Mr Stubb, who said much of his family had dual Finland-UK nationality, added that “Keir and I hit it off, in the beginning, straight off the bat”.
The Finnish president added: “I’m really glad to see the leadership the UK is showing, not least in the war in Ukraine. And in many ways, in my mind, the UK is back, back in the game.
“We’ve had an interesting week in many ways, last week in Paris with the Coalition of the Willing, many phone calls with Zelensky, myself meeting President Trump on Saturday, and we continue the conversations today and try to find solutions together.
“But I think Finland and the UK are tied hip-to-hip and in so many places, including Nato and of course, JEF (Joint Expeditionary Force) which you guys founded.”
Sir Keir said Mr Stubb was “welcomed as a leader and a friend”, adding that the UK and Finland had a “great relationship”.
The Prime Minister added: “I know that on all the important issues, whether it’s Ukraine or other global issues, our thinking is very closely aligned.
“And certainly I think the closer we can work together on some of these challenges, the better.”
Mr Stubb played golf with the US president during his visit over the weekend, with Mr Trump posting on Truth Social that the Finnish president was a “very good player” and he looked forward to “strengthening the partnership between the United States and Finland”.
The Finnish president, who also visited the London School of Economics and Political Science on Monday, told Sky News that Mr Trump is “the only person who can broker a peace, a ceasefire, because he’s the only one that Putin is afraid of”.
