Current affairs

Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will attend an informal ministerial gathering of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, which will be held in Slovakia’s High Tatras on 9 July. The main theme of the meeting will be conflict prevention. Ministers will discuss opportunities to promote stability and security in the OSCE region.

Speech by Lenita Toivakka, Minister for Foreign Trade and Development at the opening of the Slovak innovation liaison office.

On Friday 10 July, the President of the Republic appointed Counsellor Marja Rislakki as Head of the Finnish Embassy in Beijing as of 1 October 2015.

Under-Secretary of State for External Economic Relations Matti Anttonen will lead a Team Finland trade mission to the Czech Republic and Slovakia from 26 to 29 April.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs is making changes to Finland’s network of diplomatic missions as part of the central government’s savings. The changes arise from decisions to cut the Ministry’s appropriations for operating expenses. The embassies of Finland in Luxembourg, Bratislava (Slovakia) and Ljubljana (Slovenia) will be closed by the end of 2015.

Slovak Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajčák will visit Finland on 13 May at the invitation of Foreign Minister Erkki Tuomioja.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs is continuing its review of Finland’s network of diplomatic missions in 2013. The changes are driven by the operational budget cuts and the Government programme’s effort to strengthen Finland’s presence in the regions and countries whose importance is growing.

Slideshow: Restaurant Day lets anyone set up a pop-up resto. The Helsinki idea has quickly spread around Finland and abroad.

Invented in Helsinki and celebrating its first anniversary on May 19, 2012, Restaurant Day allows anyone to set up their own café, resto or bar for one day. It has quickly spread to other cities and become a Finnish tradition, also gaining popularity abroad.

Slideshow: Restaurant Day lets anyone set up a pop-up resto. The Helsinki idea has quickly spread around Finland and abroad.