Finnish President Alexander Stubb stated that Ukraine could benefit from the conflict in the Middle East, which could complicate Russia's military cooperation with Iran. This is reported by Bloomberg, writes UNN.
Details
According to him, the US and Israeli strikes on Iran, as well as Tehran's counterattacks on American bases in the Middle East and in other countries of the region, mean that "Iran and Russia cannot currently cooperate either in the field of missiles or in the defense industry."
Moreover, the shift in focus to Iran could create opportunities for diplomacy to end the war in Ukraine, "giving negotiators space to reach an agreement without attracting general attention to it."
Stubb also believes that the war in Ukraine could have ended sooner if Kyiv had received the same level of air defense support as happened in the Persian Gulf region in the first 7 days of the war in the Middle East.
In addition, the Finnish president compared the financial costs of both wars. According to his estimates, the first week of fighting in Iran cost approximately $40 billion, which is roughly equivalent to the annual spending of European countries on aid to Ukraine.
Separately, the Finnish leader made another comment regarding Russia and the Middle East. He noted that Russia already has two factories that produce Shahed drones using Iranian technologies. Stubb also added that a likely negative consequence of the conflict in the Middle East would be an increase in oil prices, "which, in essence, will fuel the Russian war machine."
Recall
Finnish President Alexander Stubb stated that US and Israeli military operations against Iran go beyond international law. He believes that US actions are aimed at preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons.