News about Alexander Stubb

Finland first applied for NATO membership as it sought to shore up its security situation regarding its neighbour following the invasion of Ukraine by Vladimir Putin 's forces in 2022. Finnish President Alexander Stubb said yesterday that joining the alliance a year ago has transformed his country into a 'front-line state,' given that it has doubled the military bloc's border with Russia. Finland is due to host exercises from April 26. 'NATO military exercises near the Russian borders are provocative in nature,' Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said, adding: 'Their task is to exert military pressure on the Russian Federation through a demonstration of force.' Pictured left: NATO exercises last month. Bottom right: NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg and Rishi Sunak this week.

Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden looked in great spirits as she visited Store Mosse National Park in Värnamo in the south of the country on Thursday. The royal, 46, seemed to be having a lot of fun as she donned red plastic snowshoes to wade through a marsh.  She opted for a very casual and practical look, sporting relaxed jeans and a grey parka jacket. The mother-of-two couldn't hold back her laughter as she nearly fell over in the shoes - while the bottom of her jeans had clearly suffered from falling into the area.

Crown Princess Victoria, 46, donned a matching blue trouser suit paired with a crisp white blouse to meet with seafood companies in Stockholm. She cut an elegant figure as she buttoned up the smart outfit at her waist and paired the look with navy pointed heels and stylish clutch bag. Today, the heir to the Swedish throne travelled to the Sanga-Saby Hotel in the capital city today to meet with SeaBOS, a collaboration between nine of the world's largest seafood companies.

It's the time of the year again, with slew of rain and people flopping around in the Helsinki slush - and the obvious confirmation that Finland is still the world's best place. Finland has landed the top spot in the annual World Happiness Report for the seventh year in a row, followed by northern neighbours Denmark, Iceland, and Sweden. According to the Gallup World Poll, which covers more than 140 countries, there are statistics backing this conclusion. Nobody is more skeptical than the Finns about the belief that we are the world's happiest people. Yes, we do have speeding fines that are based on income, and certainly the world's biggest concentration of metal bands.

Some 4.3 million people are going to vote for former Conservative Prime Minister Alexander Stubb and former Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto, (left) a Green Party MP running as an outsider. On January 28, Stubb (top right) secured the top spot in the first round of the election with 27 percent of the vote and is the favorite to win the presidency. Since no of the candidates obtained more than half of the votes, a run-off election was mandated. Following its NATO membership and rising tensions with neighboring Russia, Finland's next president will be charged with steering the country's foreign and security policy.

Alexander Stubb, the former prime minister of Finland's first round, is expected to win the first round of the presidential election on Sunday and face runner-up Pekka Haavisto in a runoff next month. The conservative politician, who resigned from Finnish politics in 2017 and pledged not to return, has been dubbed a favorite in the run-up to the leftist Green Party candidate. It's an unprecedented moment for the Nordic nation, which is now a NATO member with a Russian border closed - two things that were almost unthinkable just a few years ago.

Today, voters in Finland are voting for a new president as they prepare to elect a new president amid rising tensions with Russia. It's an unprecedented moment for the Nordic nation, which is not only a member of NATO, but also has its eastern boundary to Russia closed - two things that were previously unimaginable just a few years ago. Polls around the country started at 9 a.m. this morning and will close at 8 p.m. tonight.