Finnish Government strongly condemns London terrorist attacks
Press release 226/2005
8 July 2005
A series of four bomb blasts occurred in the centre of London on Thursday, 7 July. Three explosions happened in the underground and one in a bus. British authorities say they were terrorist attacks. Finnish Government strongly condemns these acts of terror.
President of the Republic Tarja Halonen sent her condolences to Queen Elisabeth II yesterday. Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen has sent his condolences to the British Prime Minister Tony Blair. Vanhanen displayed the shock he felt about the events and expressed to Britain the solidarity of Finland. He reiterated Finland's commitment to the development of international counter-terrorist cooperation.
The Finnish Government expresses its condolences for the relatives of the killed and its sympathy for the injured. Terrorism must be fought against by efficient and broad-based international cooperation.
According to the Finnish Embassy, the British are trying to continue their lives as before. It is nevertheless expected that the cooperation in fighting against terrorism is intensified. The public transport in London will probably get back to almost normal during today and tomorrow. Some underground stations may still be closed down.
It has come to our knowledge that Britain, the EU Presidency country, is planning for next week, with the lead of Home Secretary Clarke, an extra ministerial meeting of justice and home affairs to discuss what measures could be taken to intensify the counter-terrorist cooperation.
British authorities get no complaints but compliments for its actions in this crisis. The Finnish Embassy in London has confirmed that the cooperation with authorities has been impeccable. Even during the hardest pressure yesterday afternoon and evening, the Embassy received adequate contacts and answers to its inquiries. All the Finns whose families and friends have requested to check their situation have been reached.
As soon as the identity of the injured who are in hospitals in London has been verified, the authorities will, with the approval of the victims, notify the respective embassies. So far the Finnish Embassy in London has received no information of seriously injured Finnish citizens.
As the economic impacts of the London blasts are assessed, comparisons may be made with Spain where the effects of the Madrid attacks were eventually relatively small. The impacts for Britain are also likely to be minimal.
With regard to the world economy, the negative effects will be manifested through a general increase of uncertainty. Combined with the record-high oil price, the London blasts may affect tourism and, in the short run, harm the prospects of the European economy. For Finland's part, the economic impacts are identified only indirectly through the world economy but will remain minimal.
The phone service of Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs received 385 phone calls between 13.15 on Thursday and 9.45 on Friday, most of which during the Thursday afternoon and early evening.
The service number of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs will continue answering inquiries at least over the weekend, tel. 0800 04444. The Finnish Embassy in London will also serve during the weekend , tel. +44 20 7839 6200.
An electronic form for inquiries, which is intended to famillies who have not been able to reach Finnish citizens in London, is still available on the website of the Foreign Ministry at https://formin.finland.fi/netcomm/queries/viewForm.asp?iFormID=13
Further information: Timo Härkönen, Situation Awareness Coordinator, Prime Minister's Office, tel. +358 9 160 23500 and Sirpa Aalto, Secretary for International Affairs, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, tel. +358 9 160 55744