Foreign Ministry's press releases

The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) will hold its 57th session from 9 September to 11 October in Geneva, Switzerland.

Estonian Minister of Foreign Affairs Margus Tsahkna will visit Helsinki on 6 September and meet Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen will visit Albania, Serbia and Kosovo on 4–5 September. The aim of the visit is to strengthen political and commercial relations with Finland’s partners in the Western Balkans. Finland supports the aspirations of the region’s countries for EU membership.

Matilda af Hällström will serve as Special Adviser to Finland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen starting from 2 September 2024. She was the acting Special Adviser to the Minister for Foreign Affairs from 4 December 2023 to 12 January 2024.

At the presidential session on 30 August, the President of the Republic appointed a new non-resident Ambassador to Albania.

The EU foreign ministers will convene for an informal meeting in Brussels on 29 August. Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen will represent Finland at the meeting.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen will visit Stockholm on 26 August to address the meeting of Swedish ambassadors and give a speech at the World Water Week.

At its session on 22 August, the Government appointed a Deputy Director General to the Department for Africa, the Middle East and Latin America.

In honour of Ukrainian Independence Day on Saturday 24 August, the Government will fly the Ukrainian flag at Senate Square in front of the Government Palace and at Martti Ahtisaari Square in the courtyard of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs’ main building Merikasarmi, which will also be illuminated in blue and yellow in the evening.

Heads of Finland’s missions abroad and foreign policy leaders will meet again at the Annual Meeting of Heads of Mission in Helsinki on 26–28 August. Sweden’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Tobias Billström has been invited as guest speaker to the meeting.