Finland and the OSCE
The Permanent Mission of Finland to the OSCE in Vienna represents Finland’s interests and promotes Finland's objectives in the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE).
The activities of the Permanent Mission are led by the OSCE-accredited Ambassador and Permanent Representative Vesa Häkkinen (since 2021). The Permanent Mission of Finland to the OSCE is based in Vienna, where the OSCE Secretariat is located and weekly meetings are held.
In 1975, Finland signed the Helsinki Final Act(Link to another website.) along with 34 other States thus creating the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe (CSCE), later established as the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE). Ever since, Finland has been regarded as a strong supporter of the OSCE in its aim to ensure wide-ranging security. The 1975 Helsinki Final Act remains as one of the OSCE’s cornerstones.
Finland strives to defend the basic principles and commitments of the OSCE and to ensure that the Organization remains operational and able to provide the maximum value added and security for Finland, Europe, and the neighboring regions. We focus on the active participation and commitment of all participating States to the OSCE. It is important that the OSCE institutions remain autonomous and strong, and Finland supports their activities in accordance with its priorities. Finland also considers the work of the 16 OSCE field operations very important.
Our objective is to contribute constructively to issues important for Finland in accordance with the policies and priorities of the government programme and the Foreign Ministry of Finland. We will continue to have the emphasis on the politico-military dimension, where structured dialogue(Link to another website.), launched in the OSCE at the Hamburg Ministerial Council in December 2016, is our priority. We will also work to support Finnish candidates to central positions in the OSCE Secretariat, institutions and field operations.
In addition to OSCE structured dialogue and other confidence-building measures, items high on Finland’s agenda are the conflict Russia’s illegal war of aggression in Ukraine, protracted conflicts and their negotiation formats (Minsk Group, Geneva International Discussions, 5+2 process), mediation (co-chairmanship of the OSCE's Group of Friends on Mediation with Switzerland and Turkey), cyber security, the rights of women and girls, gender equality, human rights and fundamental freedoms, rights of persons belonging to minorities including the rights and status of Roma and Sinti, and strong participation of civil society.
As a member of the European Union, Finland coordinates its OSCE policies with other EU Member States.
You can find information on the members of the Permanent Mission and their areas of responsibility on our contact information page. We would be happy to answer any questions you may have!
Permanent Representatives of Finland to the OSCE |
|
| 1986–1989 | Markku Reimaa |
| 1989–1992 | Pertti Torstila |
| 1992–1995 | René Nyberg |
| 1995–1998 | Pekka Ojanen |
| 1998–2002 | Pekka Kujasalo |
| 2002–2007 | Aleksi Härkönen |
| 2007–2010 | Antti Turunen |
| 2010–2013 | Timo Kantola |
| 2013–2017 | Katja Pehrman |
| 2017–2021 | Päivi Laivola de Rosière |
| 2021 | Vesa Häkkinen |