Finland has stated that there is no perception of Russia as an enemy

Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen said that the country does not perceive Russia as an enemy, but considers it premature to restore bilateral relations. She said this on April 5 on the air of the Yle television and radio company.

"Russia is not our enemy," she said.

According to her, Finland hopes for good-neighborly relations, but it is too early to talk about normalization of relations.

"It all depends on when Russia begins to demonstrate a desire to return to the international treaty system," the politician said.

According to her, Helsinki should discuss this issue with European partners, but it is not yet the time for normalization, and instead it is necessary to continue to support Ukraine, weaken Russia with sanctions and strengthen its own defense."Газета.Ru ".

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Earlier, on April 1, Finnish President Alexander Stubb said that the country should prepare for the return of relations with Russia. He also stressed that the resumption of dialogue between the two countries would depend on the end of the conflict in Ukraine.

In turn, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, commenting on the words of the Finnish leader, that the Russian Federation has never sought to spoil relations with other states, especially with neighbors, but has always advocated mutually beneficial cooperation.