Steve Witkoff reported significant progress in the peace talks. (Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
"We’re probably closer [to reaching a peace agreement] than we have been at any time of this war," Stubb said on "The Sunday Briefing."
He added that Kushner and Witkoff have spent the past several weeks "working around the clock" to narrow differences between the two sides.
Stubb also credited unity between Western allies after talks last weekend in Berlin, making note of two key takeaways.
Finnish President Alexander Stubb, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, front row from left, and Onas Gahr, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, Ursula von der Leyen, Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof, and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, back row from left, stand together in the chancellery in Berlin, Germany, on Dec. 15, 2025. (Markus Schreiber, Pool/AP)
"One was that Europe, Ukraine and the United States were united in our resolve to get a just and lasting peace... and the second one was the idea of security guarantees for Ukraine," Stubb said. "So, we're sort of almost there, but the most difficult 5% are still left."
Stubb said Russia’s private negotiating posture may be more flexible than President Vladimir Putin’s public rhetoric but warned Moscow’s core objective remains the destruction of Ukraine’s existence.
The Finnish president added that he has been in close contact with Trump, Witkoff and Kushner as talks intensify, arguing that mounting economic pressure on Russia is making the negotiating strategy effective.
U.S. sanctions on Russian oil giants Lukoil and Rosneft are biting, Stubb said, warning that a flat rejection of a U.S.-Ukraine-Europe peace framework should trigger even tougher measures.
He argued that U.S. sanctions targeting Russian oil giants Lukoil and Rosneft have been particularly effective.
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If Russia were to flatly reject a peace framework agreed upon by Ukraine, Europe and the U.S., "that's when it's time to hike up the sanctions," Stubb said, "because they work."
Fox News Digital’s Max Bacall contributed to this report.
Greg Wehner is a breaking news reporter for Fox News Digital.
Story tips and ideas can be sent to Greg.Wehner@Fox.com and on Twitter @GregWehner.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trumps-team-reports-concrete-progress-ukraine-peace-negotiations-european-partners