Foreign Ministry's press releases

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs will continue evacuation of Finnish citizens, permanent residents of Finland and those who have worked for the Finnish State in close cooperation with the Finnish Defence Forces and partner countries.

The Heads of Finnish Missions abroad will convene for their annual meeting on 23-25 August. The meeting will discuss foreign policy, international relations, the state of the global economy and Finland’s positioning in the post-pandemic world. Due to COVID-19, the Foreign Ministry will hold the meeting virtually in its newly renovated premises in Merikasarmi.

The conditions for further development cooperation and the forms it will take will be assessed together with the international community and development cooperation organisations as the situation in Afghanistan becomes clearer.

A new feature is being added to the 112 Suomi mobile app. Starting on August 17, you can use the app to submit a travel notification.

The EU foreign affairs ministers will hold an informal video conference on Tuesday 17 August. Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will represent Finland at the meeting.

Due to the security situation in Afghanistan, the Finnish Embassy in Kabul can no longer conduct its activities. As a result, the Embassy will be closed until further notice on 16 August 2021. The diplomatic staff of the mission is being evacuated from the country.

The Finnish Government decided at an extraordinary meeting on 15 August that Finland can admit a maximum of 40 additional current and former Afghan employees and their families. The decision adds to the Government’s decision of 13 August to admit 130 persons to Finland. This means that 170 persons can be relocated from Afghanistan to Finland.

In response to the rapidly deteriorating security situation in Afghanistan, the Finnish Government decided at an extraordinary meeting on 13 August that Afghans who have worked for Finland, the EU and NATO can be admitted to Finland with their families and issued residence permits.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Europe Forum Turku have agreed on a partnership in which the Ministry for Foreign Affairs will support the annual Europe Forum over the period of 2021-2023. The joint aim of the partners is to promote a high-quality, versatile and interesting EU debate.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will meet Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi in Helsinki on 3 August.