Foreign Ministry's press releases

The Government will organise a festive illumination at Merikasarmi on Finland’s 104th Independence Day. The refurbished and modernised Merikasarmi premises were taken back into use in September.

Today, the President of the Republic Sauli Niinistö approved an amendment to the Decree of the President of the Republic on the Foreign Service. The amendment concerning the locations of Finland’s diplomatic missions and the provision of consular services in the Diplomatic Service will enter into force on 10 December 2021. With the amendment, embassies of Finland will be established in Dakar, Senegal, and in Doha, Qatar, as of 10 December 2021.

The UN estimates that 274 million people will need humanitarian assistance in 2022. The needs are increasing, for example due to the escalation of conflicts in Afghanistan and Ethiopia. Finland will increase its support for the alleviation of human suffering in crisis areas, which is why Finland will raise its funding for humanitarian assistance to EUR 113 million this year.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has published a website on where, how and when Finland’s development cooperation funds are used. Launching this public site increases the openness and transparency of development cooperation.

The 10th anniversary of the Freedom Online Coalition (FOC) will be celebrated at the end of Finland’s Chairship. On 3 December, Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will host a virtual Conference of foreign ministers representing 34 FOC member governments. The Freedom Online Coalition 10th Anniversary Helsinki Declaration for open and accessible internet and human rights-based digitalisation will be launched at the Conference.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will attend the Ministerial Council of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, which will be held in Stockholm on 1–2 December. Sweden holds the Chairmanship of the OSCE in 2021. The meeting will discuss, among others, conflicts in the OSCE region as well as the situation in Afghanistan and its wider security impacts.

Sima Sami Bahous, appointed as Executive Director of the United Nations gender equality organisation UN Women in September, will visit Finland on 8–9 December.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has granted EUR 17.82 million to international non-governmental organisations (INGOs) for 2022–2024. Support was granted to 11 international human rights organisations operating in developing countries, whose work focuses on four themes: ending impunity; supporting human rights defenders; strengthening the implementation of economic, social and cultural rights and addressing discriminatory practices; and business and human rights.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs and CMI – Martti Ahtisaari Peace Foundation will host a delegation from Kosovo on 1 to 3 December 2021 in Helsinki, Finland. The delegation consists of political decision-makers. During their three-day stay in Helsinki, the delegation has meetings with Finnish and international experts.

On 30 November 2021, the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) decided that Finland is to chair the organisation in 2025. The year 2025 will mark the 50th anniversary of the Helsinki Final Act, which was adopted at the Conference on Security and Co-operation in Europe in 1975.