Norway's Aftenposten told Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen to "shut up" on October 27, after she attacked a Finnish-Norwegian phone call to Vladimir Putin as uncoordinated with allies.

The column, by the Oslo daily's political editor Kjetil B. Alstadheim, ran under a headline written in Danish, "Hold nu kaeft, Mette!" ("Just shut up, Mette!"). It appeared the same day Frederiksen told Danish broadcaster DR she was "very sceptical" about the call that Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre had just held with the Russian president.

The row opens a public split between Nordic neighbours that are all Nato members and among Kyiv's firmest backers, over whether Europe should open its own line to the Kremlin while US special envoy Steve Witkoff handles most of the contact with Moscow. Finland is an EU member and Norway is not, and Brussels has yet to pick an envoy for talks with Russia; Stubb, Støre and Frederiksen herself have all been named as candidates for that job.

"Now and then Denmark's prime minister Mette Frederiksen is a little too quick on the trigger. Her outburst [on October 27] was definitely in that category," Alstadheim wrote, under a standfirst that read: "Europe must talk to Vladimir Putin. Stubb & Støre are only a start."

Had Frederiksen waited for Ukraine's reaction, she would have seen President Volodymyr Zelenskiy thank the two leaders, the column argues. It was Frederiksen who acted alone, since Ukraine, the Europeans and the Americans had all been kept informed of the call in advance, according to Alstadheim.

The rest of the piece makes the case for direct European contact with Putin. The EU has failed to appoint a single representative for the Ukraine talks and the British-French-German format has not produced a common position, leaving Witkoff as the only person really engaging with the Kremlin. Stubb and Støre, leaders of two countries that border Russia, speak for neither Europe as a whole nor a new negotiating channel, but they could mark the start of a distinct European voice, the column says. In effect Frederiksen is proposing to leave the defence of European interests to American negotiators, according to Alstadheim.

Frederiksen called the call an independent initiative by Norway and Finland. "It was not coordinated with any of us," she told DR, adding that she saw no sign that Russia wanted peace with Europe and that Europe should stick together rather than go it alone. She also compared the move to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's trip to Moscow, Euronews reported.

Zelenskiy, who spoke to both leaders straight after their conversation with Putin, gave the call his public blessing on X on October 27.

"I am grateful for the detailed briefing and for their active support for our diplomacy and the peace efforts we are pursuing together with all our partners," he wrote.

Stubb said the call had been prepared jointly with Ukraine and the US, Yle reported, and Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said it had been coordinated with Kyiv. Støre told NRK he disagreed with Frederiksen: the two leaders spoke only for their own countries, but all their allies had been informed beforehand.

Sweden sided with Copenhagen. "My impression is that everyone wants peace except Putin," Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said, according to Euronews, warning that talks which split Europe's voice carry risks. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk was cautiously optimistic about the contacts but urged vigilance in dealing with Moscow.