Russia using history to benefit current govt – Stubb

10:11, 12.09.2025 1 min read

Russia has never been able to look at its past from a critical point of view and uses history to serve the interests of the current government, said Finnish President Alexander Stubb.

"There is one country that is using history to the advantage of the current government. It is a country that has never been able to deal with its past, even look at it from a critical point of view. And that is obviously Russia," he said speaking at the 5th First Ladies and Gentlemen's Summit in Kyiv on Thursday.

Stubb explained that "when you think of Stalin as some great hero, you haven't looked honestly at your civilization."

"When you are taught at school that your country has never done anything wrong, even though its DNA is basically based on imperialism, it is very difficult to move forward. And my opinion is that you cannot base your foreign policy on the fact that you are a victim," he said.

The Finnish President stressed that one cannot base one's foreign policy on what concerns history.

"And this is precisely what we see quite often from Russia," he added.