Finnish, Russian PMs hold diverging views on Ukraine, Syria

Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipila and his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev held different viewpoints on issues of Ukraine and Syria when they met on Friday in Oulu, northern Finland.

At a press conference held after the meeting, Sipila reiterated Finland's stand on the issues concerning Ukraine and Syria.

"We are very concerned by increased fighting in east Ukraine. Regarding Syria, Finland has repeatedly expressed its deep concern over the continuous escalation of the military situation," Sipila was quoted as saying by a government press release.

The Finnish prime minister emphasized that the implementation of the Minsk agreement is the first condition for abolishing EU sanctions on Russia.

Medvedev, on his part, said Russia does not feel Ukraine would be willing to agree and proceed with the Minsk Agreement. Medvedev said he hoped the EU and the Normandy group could be active on the issue, according to Finnish news agency STT.

The Normandy group is a diplomatic grouping of Ukrainian, Russian and French presidents and German chancellor trying to resolve the situation in eastern Ukraine.

The Russian premier indicated that all parties would like to have a peaceful solution to Syria and Syria would remain as a unified country.

The two prime ministers talked about issues including the Nord Stream 2, an offshore pipeline system designed to carry natural gas from Russia to Germany through the Baltic Sea.

Sipila also said the North-East Passage cable project has promising prospects and, if implemented, will provide the fastest data connection between Europe and Asia. He said it is important that the project be implemented on a commercial basis. Endit