Press releases of Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Finland

Minister of Economic Affairs Mika Lintilä and Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Ville Skinnari will make a virtual Team Finland visit to Sweden on 15 April 2021. The visit is intended to intensify trade relations between Finnish and Swedish companies, particularly in the food and beverage industries, the textile industry and the sustainable healthcare sectors.

Finland's development cooperation expenditure in 2020 amounted to EUR 1 119 million. This represented 0.47 per cent of Finland's gross national income (GNI). Last year, the total amount of the exclusive ODA budget item administered by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs was EUR 708.4 million.

Arranged by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in collaboration with the Finnish Development NGOs Fingo and chambers of commerce, the 'Development partners' live broadcast series showcases development cooperation operators from various parts of Finland.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will attend the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels on Monday 22 March. The agenda highlights are the EU’s Southern Neighbourhood, Turkey and discussion with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet. In Brussels Minister Haavisto will also attend the meeting of NATO Ministers of Foreign Affairs on 24 March.

Pekka Haavisto, Foreign Minister of Finland, mandated by the EU High Representative Josep Borrell, is undertaking a second mission to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The Foreign Minister will discuss the situation in Ethiopia, notably the crisis in Tigray and its regional implications.

Today, on 1 April 2021, the United Nations’ Human Rights Committee issued its recommendations to Finland concerning Finland’s seventh Periodic Report on the implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

According to Finland in the World Media, an annual survey commissioned by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the innovative management of the coronavirus pandemic was the most important theme connected to Finland last year. Other news in the world media highlighted the strengths of Finland’s country image: equality, high-quality education system and stable society. The review estimates that Finland’s general reputation has further improved in foreign media.

The actions through which the global campaign will promote gender equality in technology and innovations will be announced on a virtual forum held in Mexico. Finland holds a lead role in this work. The forum will be attended by Prime Minister Sanna Marin and Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Ville Skinnari.

Minister Skinnari will visit Stockholm on 31 March–1 April. The purpose of the visit is to promote both countries’ access on a growth track in international trade after COVID-19. Worldwide and European recovery measures offer excellent growth opportunities for Finnish and Swedish companies when they explore solutions related to green transition, digitalisation and development of industries.

The Finnish Government has approved Finland's Africa strategy today. It will be used to diversify and deepen Finland’s relations with African countries, the African Union (AU) and regional organisations, with focus on political and economic relations.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has appointed Anna Kotaviita as Press Officer at the Consulate General of Finland in St Petersburg for a three-year term. Kotaviita will assume her duties in St Petersburg on 30 March 2021.

More than 200 million people across the globe need humanitarian assistance due to conflicts, natural disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic. The provision of humanitarian assistance is one of the most concrete ways of responding to crises and disasters. Finland grants a total of EUR 69.6 million to humanitarian work carried out by the UN organizations, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, and Finnish civil society organisations.

In 2021, Finland acts as the chairing country of Nordic and Baltic countries cooperation, NB8. This year’s first NB8 meeting of Foreign Ministers will be on Friday, 26 March. Due to the COVID-19 situation, the meeting will take place virtually.

In 2021–2022, Finland allocates EUR two million for the Enhanced Integrated Framework (EIF), which works to strengthen the creation of trading opportunities for least-developed countries (LDCs). The agreement on the support was signed on 23 March 2021 in Geneva.

Finland is strengthening its activities to support the rule of law activities in developing countries. Supporting democracy and the rule of law is a key goal of the Government programme and of the development policy of Finland. In recent years the rule of law has considerably weakened in different parts the world. The rule of law is subjected to increasing challenges that are exacerbated further by the COVID-19 pandemic. Work to promote and strengthen the rule of law is increasingly important.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has appointed Pasi Rajala to the post of Press Counsellor at the Embassy of Finland in Washington DC. The three-year term will start on 1 June 2021.

Together with the European Union, Finland has firmly condemned the military coup in Myanmar against its civilian government and urged restoration of the civilian government. The military authorities are demanded respect for human rights, the rule of law, freedom of assembly, and freedom of expression, including peaceful protests. The armed forces’ violence against protesters is strongly condemnable.

In its recent report, the Parliamentary Committee on Crisis Management proposes that the level of ambition in Finnish crisis management should be raised. This requires commitment to more active and diverse participation, enhanced effectiveness and deeper cooperation between those involved in crisis management.

The home affairs ministers and foreign affairs ministers of EU member states will meet at an informal video conference on 15 March 2021. Finland will be represented by Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto and State Secretary Olli-Poika Parviainen. The announced theme of the meeting is the external dimension of the EU’s migration and asylum reform. The debate will focus on mutually beneficial migration partnerships between the EU and non-EU countries, and enhanced coordination between the different parties.

The European Union will continue the duration of its export authorisation requirement for vaccines against SARS-related viruses (SARS-CoV-2) and vaccine components until 30 June 2021. At the same time, clarifications will be made to the export authorisation scheme’s scope of application, and re-export will become subject to pre-authorisation. In Finland, applications for export authorisation are submitted to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. Finland forms its preliminary position on an application based on a statement issued by the Finnish Medicines Agency, and the decision to grant an export authorisation is made in line with the opinion of the European Commission.