Iceland’s foreign minister says nuclear call will not weaken Ukraine support

Iceland’s Foreign Minister Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir has condemned a call by People’s Party executive director and spokesperson Heimir Már Pétursson to use nuclear weapons against Russia, saying the remarks must not weaken Iceland’s support for Ukraine. She made the comments in an interview with mbl.is after a cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

Gunnarsdóttir said Pétursson had apologised and withdrawn his remarks, which she said were indefensible and contrary to Iceland’s foreign policy. She said Iceland supports nuclear disarmament and is a peace-loving nation. The post had apparently been removed from X.

Asked whether the remarks carried significance because they came from a representative of a governing party in a NATO country, the minister said they were not in line with Iceland’s policy. She also warned against letting the controversy distract from Russia’s war against Ukraine.

Gunnarsdóttir criticised what she described as a response from the Russian embassy that sought to divert attention from the war. She said Russian forces had attacked a hospital in Kharkiv, where more than 70 people were injured, as well as shelters and aid centres. She said 30 people had died in the previous 24 hours.

She said standing with Ukraine also meant defending Europe’s security, freedom and fundamental principles. With a harsh winter beginning, she said, support for Ukraine must remain unequivocal.