US Foreign Minister rejects Putin’s peace plan at NATO summit, emphasizing need for unity against Russian threat

Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen from the United States is attending the NATO summit in Washington. The summit is overshadowed by Russia’s massive attacks on Ukraine. Valtonen’s message to Russia and Vladimir Putin is clear: NATO is stronger than ever, and its goal is to build a world where its values triumph: freedom, democracy, human rights, equality, and the rule of law.

There have been recent claims that Vladimir Putin personally proposed a “new peace plan” that includes the demilitarization of the Crimean Peninsula and the seizure of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Valtonen firmly rejects this alleged peace plan, stating that Russia, under its current administration, is never satisfied and will always seek to attain more.

She emphasizes that Russia only understands strength. NATO is a defense alliance that does not threaten Russia, but aims to ensure that Russia does not encroach on its territory. Valtonen warns that all NATO countries, including the United States, are subject to hybrid attacks and are all in the same boat.

Finland has brought to the NATO summit the issue of hybrid warfare as a whole, which it managed to get included in NATO’s declaration. This includes the instrumentalization of people, which President Alexander Stubb also supports.

According to Valtonen, it is essential to recognize that all NATO countries are targets of Russian sabotage. She contends that it is vital to speak openly about this as all sabotage aims to weaken Western unity. She believes that peace can be achieved by providing as much support as possible to Ukraine now.

Valtonen clarifies that sabotage is concrete and affects critical infrastructure or arms shipments to Ukraine. She points out that cyberattacks and disinformation campaigns have been witnessed in Finland for years.

When asked about the duration of the war, Valtonen, while not being a fortune teller, emphasizes the importance of setting goals as a politician and decision-maker. The ultimate goal is peace and the extension of previously mentioned values to Ukraine. She is optimistic that if people are given the choice between living in a stagnant autocracy or a society where they can make progress and make their own choices, it is clear what choice they will make.

In the long run, Valtonen believes that the world has become significantly better for humanity and less violent than it was decades ago. However, she acknowledges that there is still much work to do to achieve a just peace in the short term.