Foreign Ministry's press releases

Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Paavo Väyrynen has appointed Annika Saarikko as his new Press Attaché. Previously working in communications at the Church Council, Saarikko will take up her new post at the Ministry on 20 July.

Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Paavo Väyrynen does not accept further increases in the number of Finnish peacekeepers in Afghanistan.

Minister Väyrynen feels that the Finnish development co-operation enjoys strong popular support. This is the only conclusion one can draw from the annual Gallup poll on development cooperation that was published in Pori at the SuomiAreena event on 16 July. The Minister believes that one key factor for the strong support people show for development cooperation is the fact that development cooperation implemented by Finland is considered efficient and successful.

In spite of the threat of protectionism associated with the international economic crisis, the occurrence of obstacles to trade encountered by Finnish companies has not increased significantly, shows a report published by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs today. However, from the Finnish point of view, the obstacles to trade in the Russian markets form a particular problem. Almost half of the obstacles to trade reported by the companies are encountered in trade between Finland and Russia.

On 14 July, Minister Väyrynen participated in the stakeholder meeting of the Wider Europe Initiative. A preliminary plan outlining the intended implementation of the initiative during 2009-2013 was also published during the meeting. In his address, Minister Väyrynen stated that the Wider Europe Initiative will complement the Finnish foreign and security policy in Eastern Europe, South Caucasus and Central Asia by development policy measures.

In July, Ministry for Foreign Affairs will act as one of the main partners in the already established SuomiAreena event in Pori, organised by the City of Pori and MTV3. Pori will offer a host of interesting debates and civic events on 14-17 July. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs will present its activities at 10:00 am-5:00 pm in two tents for three days, from Wednesday, 15 July, until Friday, 17 July.

Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Paavo Väyrynen has today taken the decision to grant an additional 500,000 euros of neighbouring cooperation funds to prepare establishment projects of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Northwest Russia during 2009–2010. The sum of 600,000 euros was granted for the same purpose earlier this year.

The EU has made a decision concerning customs classification of mobile phones in accordance with Finland’s wishes. The decision made means that, in practice, duty-free treatment in the EU will continue also for mobile phones equipped with so-called advanced features and parts thereof. The decision made is in keeping with our objectives and Finland is satisfied with the final outcome.

A large export and investment promotion delegation from China led by Mr Gao Hucheng, Vice Minister of Commerce, arrives in Finland on 9 July at the invitation of Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Paavo Väyrynen and Minister of Economic Affairs Mauri Pekkarinen.

Led by Mr Gao Hucheng, Vice Minister of Commerce, a large export and investment promotion delegation from China is visiting Finland on 9–10 July at the invitation of Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Paavo Väyrynen and Minister of Economic Affairs Mauri Pekkarinen. The official delegation is accompanied by representatives of more than 200 Chinese companies.