New Ambassadors to Moscow, Soul, Tel Aviv and Nicosia
At the presidential session on Friday 19 February, the President of the Republic decided to appoint the following new Ambassadors. They will assume their functions on 1 September 2016.
Counsellor for Foreign Affairs Mikko Hautala was appointed to serve as Head of the Embassy of Finland in Moscow, Russia. Hautala is currently Foreign Policy Adviser and Member of the Cabinet in the Office of the President of the Republic. He has also served as Senior Diplomatic Adviser to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and held positions in the Embassies of Finland in Moscow, Brussels and Kiev.
Counsellor for Foreign Affairs Eero Suominen was appointed to serve as Heald of the Embassy of Finland in Soul, South Korea. Suominen is currently Team Finland Coordinator in the Department for External Economic Relations of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. He has also served as Director of the Training Unit and worked in the EU Secretariat at the Foreign Ministry. In the diplomatic service, he has worked, for example, as Consul General in the Consulate General of Finland in Canton and held positions in the Embassy of Finland in Vienna, in Finland's Permanent Representation to the European Union, and in the Embassies of Finland to Rome and Bonn. Suominen joined the Ministry for Foreing Affairs in 1985.
Counsellor for Foreign Affairs Anu Saarela was appointed to serve as Head of the Embassy of Finland in Tel Aviv, Israel. Saarela will transfer to Tel Aviv from Nicosia, where she is currently Head of Mission. In the Ministry, Saarela has worked, for example, in the Legal Service and in the Political Department. She has also held a number of positions in the diplomatic service, for example, Tokyo, Stockholm, Washington and Lagos. Saarela joined the Ministry in 1987.
Counsellor for Foreign Affairs Timo Heino was appointed to serve as Head of the Embassy of Finland in Nicosia, Cyprus. Heino is currently Senior Adviser (public diplomacy) in the Department for Communications of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. He has previously worked as Director of the Unit for Public Diplomacy and the Cultural Unit in the same department. He has also worked, for example, in the Political Department and in the Embassies of Finland in Vienna and Kuala Lumpur. Additionally, he has served as Press Counsellor in Oslo and Copenhagen and as a political journalist.
In addition, the President of the Republic decided to accredit Ambassador Petri Tuomi-Nikula, Head of the Finnish Embassy in Budapest, to represent Finland also in Slovenia.