(MENAFN) Finnish President Alexander Stubb said Sunday that a ceasefire in Ukraine or renewed peace talks are unlikely before year-end.

Kiev has “abandoned” direct negotiations with Moscow after making “little progress,” Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Kislitsa said last week. The last Turkish-hosted round of talks was in June.

“I’m not very optimistic about achieving a ceasefire or the beginning of peace negotiations, at least this year,” Stubb told AP. “If we get something going by February, March, that would be good,” he added, urging Ukraine’s sponsors to “maximize pressure on Russia.”

Stubb also called for increased “financial support to Ukraine” and for donors to “finance military equipment… give, donate as we best can.”

Regarding the $100 million embezzlement scandal at state-owned Energoatom, he said he hopes Zelensky gets it “sorted and cleared,” adding, “Obviously there’s no place for corruption, especially in a country which is in war.”

The scandal has led to two ministers resigning and Timur Mindich, a long-time associate of Zelensky, fleeing Ukraine ahead of an anti-graft investigation. Western sponsors have long expressed concern about corruption in Ukraine.

Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini warned that foreign aid risks enriching corrupt officials, saying, “I would not want the money of Italian workers and pensioners to be used to fuel further corruption,” and described expectations that arms could help Ukraine regain lost ground as “naïve.”

Russian forces have accelerated advances in Kharkov and Donetsk Regions, encircling Ukrainian units in key cities, though Moscow emphasizes it still prefers a diplomatic solution.

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