Foreign Ministry's press releases

The Foreign Affairs Council of the EU will hold an extraordinary meeting in Brussels on 18 January. Development ministers will discuss the situation in Haiti and aid operations following the earthquake there. The meeting is convened and chaired by High Representative Catherine Ashton. Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Paavo Väyrynen will attend the meeting for Finland.

Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb will visit Saudi Arabia, Oman and Qatar from 17 to 21 January. The Foreign Minister’s agenda includes meetings with the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia, the Sultan of Oman and the Crown Price of Qatar.

Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb sent his condolences on 14 January to the families of the UN peacekeepers killed in the Haiti earthquake.

Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Paavo Väyrynen has decided to grant 1,250,000 euros in humanitarian assistance to the earthquake victims in Haiti. Of this sum, 750,000 euros will be channelled through the Finnish Red Cross, for use to finance a field hospital that will be sent to Haiti. The sum of 500,000 euros is granted to support the rescue operations of Finn Church Aid. Both assistance grants correspond to the organisations’ own proposals.

The annual magazine Focus on the Economy and Technology 2010, a showcase for Finland’s strengths that reaches a global reader base, has a revamped look and all new content. Published jointly by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, Tekes, Sitra, Invest in Finland and Finnfacts, Focus magazine celebrates the innovation skills and diverse expertise of Finnish businesses and society alike.

Despite the international economic situation, Finland’s Consulate General in St. Petersburg received a record high number of visa applications – 546,520 in total – in 2009. Compared against the 524,404 applications submitted during the previous year, this represents growth of four per cent.

Minister of Migration and European Affairs Astrid Thors presented Wednesday, 16 December, the newly-published report on exerting influence within the EU. The report looks into how EU affairs are currently handled in Finland and strives to find ways to enhance Finland’s exercise of influence in the EU.

Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb and his colleagues from Norway, Poland, Sweden and Denmark are available for citizens at the St. Thomas's Christmas Fair in Helsinki on Saturday, 19 December

On Wednesday, 9 December, the President of the Republic and the Cabinet Committee on Foreign and Security Policy discussed the state of play in Afghanistan and Finland’s participation in crisis management. Next time, the development of Finland’s participation in the ISAF operation will be taken on the agenda of the Cabinet Committee on Foreign and Security Policy in the beginning of 2010.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle will visit Finland on Friday, 11 December. He will have bilateral meetings with Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb and President of the Republic Tarja Halonen.