Foreign Ministry's press releases

Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will host a Nordic-African Foreign Ministers' Meeting on 13–15 June. In addition to the Nordic foreign ministers, 25 African foreign ministers have been invited to the meeting.

The working group appointed by the Ministry for Foreign Affairs presents proposals concerning the amendment of the Act on the Making of Decisions Concerning the Provision of and Request for International Assistance. The working group proposes that the Act be amended so that its scope of application would cover not only international assistance but also activities arising from Finland's national needs without an outside request. This would involve a Finnish authority acting outside the territory of Finland, but within the restrictions of international law, either independently or in support of another Finnish authority.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will meet Ireland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney in Helsinki on 7 June.

The European Union (EU) published a new package of sanctions on 3 June 2022. The new sanctions prohibit the import of crude oil and petroleum products from Russia.

Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Ville Skinnari will visit Turkey on 6–8 June.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs will organise a thisisFINLAND Foreign Correspondents’ Programme (FCP) from 5 to 11 June 2022. The programme will give 13 young foreign correspondents and media professionals an opportunity to learn about Finland and the Finnish society.

Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Ville Skinnari will attend a meeting of EU trade ministers (Foreign Affairs Council) in Luxembourg on Friday 3 June 2022. The agenda items will include preparations for the 12th World Trade Organization Ministerial Conference as well as the trade relations between the EU and the United States and between the EU and China. The ministers will also exchange views on the EU’s ongoing trade agreement negotiations and the implementation of the agreements.

A new fast track service enables specialists, growth entrepreneurs and their family members to obtain a residence permit within 14 days. The service will be launched at the beginning of June. This service pledge is one of the Government's many measures to streamline the immigration of experts.

Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic Jan Lipavský will visit Finland on Thursday 2 June and have a meeting with Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto.

Senior officials responsible for Barents cooperation in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Iceland and the EU will meet in Kuusamo, Finland, on 30–31 May. Ambassador Jari Vilén will lead the discussion on the next steps during Finland’s Presidency of the Barents Euro-Arctic Council (BEAC).