Current Affairs

Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen will meet Swedish Minister for Foreign Affairs Maria Malmer Stenergard in Stockholm on 8 April.

Finland provides humanitarian assistance to Myanmar. The damage caused by the recent severe earthquake in Myanmar exacerbates the already challenging humanitarian situation.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs will organise export control training for companies exporting dual-use items on Friday 9 May 2025.

Finland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen will attend a meeting of NATO Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Brussels on 3–4 April.

Opening Statement, LDC Future Forum 1 April 2025, Lusaka, Zambia Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Ville Tavio

Finland holds the Chairpersonship of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) in 2025. Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen has appointed Prof. Dr Wolfgang Palaver as Personal Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office on Combating Discrimination.

Finland, Zambia and the United Nations will organise the Least Developed Countries Future Forum (LDC Future Forum) in Lusaka on 1–3 April. The Forum will seek innovative solutions to enhance the resilience of LDCs. The Finnish delegation will be led by Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Ville Tavio. In addition to attending the Forum, Minister Tavio will have several bilateral meetings, including with the President of Zambia, the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly, and counterpart ministers.

Finland has been a forerunner in conducting national evaluations of sustainable development. The new second edition of a guidebook compiles experiences from various countries and provides practical lessons for planning and implementing country-led evaluations of sustainable development.

The EU sanctions list includes members of the Belarusian Central Electoral Commission, representatives of the Belarusian judiciary and individuals or entities that are considered to have committed serious human rights violations and undermined democracy in Belarus. The EU Member States approved the additional sanctions on 27 March 2025.

After unusual activity was noticed in the Foreign Service's remote access service, the initial investigation confirmed a suspected hacking incident. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has blocked the use of the service and made a request for an investigation to the Finnish National Bureau of Investigation.

The first issue of the Kauppapolitiikka magazine in 2025 delves deep into current events in international trade and politics. Why is the world economy buzzing, and who wins most when geopolitics change?

Finnish Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Ville Tavio will attend a high-level forum in Oslo on 24–25 March. The forum is organised by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR). The event will discuss accelerating financing to reduce disaster risks and to improve global preparedness for risks.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs requests opinions from companies in relation to the increased tariffs for imports and the EU’s possible countermeasures.

Senegal’s Minister for African Integration and Foreign Affairs, Yassine Fall, will visit Helsinki on 20 March and meet Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen.

Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen will visit Bosnia and Herzegovina from 17 to 18 March. This is her first visit to South-Eastern Europe as the Chairperson-in-Office of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). The aim of the visit is to strengthen the OSCE’s partnership in the region.

Helsinki, 14 March – Finland, in its role as Chair of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), extends its congratulations to the governments of Armenia and Azerbaijan on the successful conclusion of negotiations for the draft text of a peace settlement. This significant milestone reflects a shared commitment to pursue a future of peace, stability, and co-operation in the South Caucasus.

EU foreign ministers will convene in Brussels on 17 March. Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen will represent Finland at the meeting.

Opening Remarks by Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland Elina Valtonen at the Helsinki Roundtable on AI and International Security at Aalto University on 13 March 2025.

The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates, HH Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, will visit Finland on 14–15 March on the invitation of Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen. This year marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Finland and the United Arab Emirates.

This is FINLAND Magazine is now available in English. Part of the 'This is FINLAND' country brand media, promoted across several channels, the Magazine targets an international readership.

The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has made decisions on humanitarian assistance, prioritising Ukraine, major refugee crises in Africa and the humanitarian situation in the Middle East. Funding is also granted for supporting school meals and promoting the inclusion of people with disabilities. The amount of humanitarian assistance now granted totals EUR 36.5 million, of which EUR 16 million is allocated to Ukraine.

Representatives from the United States, Canada, and Finland discussed concrete implementation of this important initiative to build Arctic and Polar icebreakers.

The 69th session of the UN Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) will take place in New York between 10 and 21 March 2025. Finland will be represented at the session by a broad-based delegation headed by Minister Sanni Grahn-Laasonen.

On 6 March 2025, the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) delivered a decision on cases concerning additional tax on pension income. The ECtHR unanimously held that there had been no violation of Article 14 (prohibition of discrimination) of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and Article 1 of Protocol No. 12 (general prohibition of discrimination) to the Convention. The ECtHR declared the complaint under Article 13 (right to an effective remedy) of the Convention inadmissible.

Ministers from the Nordic and Baltic countries (Nordic-Baltic Eight, NB8) will convene at a meeting of the Governors to the World Bank Group (WPG) in Stockholm on 6 March. The main topics on the agenda are the World Bank’s support to Ukraine, international development financing, job creation and clean transition. Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Ville Tavio will represent Finland at the meeting.

Speech by Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen about Finland’s approach to European security at an event entitled "Keeping the peace on NATO’s longest border with Russia", hosted by Chatham House on 4 March 2025.

Helsinki Roundtable on AI and International Security, an event to be held at Aalto University on 13 March 2025, will bring together international experts, decision-makers and business leaders to discuss the impacts of artificial intelligence on global security.

At the presidential session on 28 February, the President of the Republic appointed a non-resident Ambassador to the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen will visit Dublin, Belfast and London from 3 to 4 March. In Dublin, the Foreign Minister will meet Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs, Trade and Minister for Defence Simon Harris. In Belfast, Minister Valtonen will deliver the Annual Harri Holkeri Lecture on mediation at Queen’s University. In London, she will speak about European security at an event hosted by Chatham House.

The ministers met in Helsinki on 26 February. They discussed the bilateral relations between Finland and Türkiye and EU–Türkiye trade and economic relations.

Opening Remarks by OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland Elina Valtonen, Reinforced Permanent Council of the OSCE, 24 February 2025.

Opening Remarks at the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, Winter meeting on 20 February 2025 by OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland, Ms Elina Valtonen, were delivered by Permanent Representative, Ambassador Vesa Häkkinen.

Finnish Minister for Nordic Cooperation Anders Adlercreutz will attend the meeting of Ministers for Nordic Cooperation in Copenhagen on 26 February. Finland and Åland are holding the Presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers in 2025.

Permanent State Secretary Jukka Salovaara will visit Geneva, Switzerland, from 25 to 26 February. He will deliver Finland’s address to a High-Level Segment of the 58th session of the UN Human Rights Council and to a High-Level Segment of the Conference on Disarmament.

The 16th sanctions package adopted by the European Union on 24 February bans imports of primary aluminium and extends export prohibitions. The package also imposes new sanctions on shadow vessels and those who support the operations of the shadow fleet.

Pasi Rajala, State Secretary to Finland’s Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen and Minister of Defence Antti Häkkänen, will attend meetings on Ukraine at the UN on 24 February. Rajala will travel from New York to Washington DC on 25–26 February.

Finland supports the second phase (2025–2027) of the Partnership Fund for a Resilient Ukraine (PFRU) with a total of EUR 4.5 million. There are nine countries channelling their support to Ukraine through the Partnership Fund.

Joint statement by the coastal states of the Baltic Sea and North Sea – Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden and the United Kingdom – following the fourth expert-level meeting in Stockholm 19–20 February 2025.

EU foreign ministers will convene in Brussels on 24 February. Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen will represent Finland at the meeting.

Following legislative amendments that entered into force on 17 February, wild-berry picking carried out by foreign nationals is treated as seasonal work. Companies must hire foreign berry pickers for a contractual employment relationship to enable them apply for an entry permit to Finland. In future, berry pickers will apply for a seasonal work visa for stays up to three months.

The Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs will participate in the international Girls Takeover event run by Plan International, a children’s rights organisation. During the event, girls take over the roles of political, social and economic leaders. On 12 March, Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen will step aside for the day to let Natasha Al-Zeilaa, an upper secondary school student from Vantaa, assume her post.

At the presidential session on 13 February, the President of the Republic appointed a non-resident Ambassador to Samoa.

The Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs introduces the guidelines for sustainable meeting practices that it has updated in cooperation with WWF Finland. The principles outlined in these guidelines will be observed in all events of the OSCE Chairpersonship organised in Finland in 2025. The Ministry for Foreign Affairs is committed to promoting sustainability in all events.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen will attend the Munich Security Conference on 14–16 February. She will take part in a panel on hybrid warfare and speak at an event on new geopolitics.

Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen has invited the Nordic ministers of Foreign Affairs to this year’s first meeting of the Nordic (N5) cooperation on 11 February. Finland is holding the Presidency of the N5 cooperation on foreign and security policy in 2025.

Keynote Speech by Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen, Chairperson-in-office of the OSCE, Conference on Addressing Anti-Semitism in the OSCE Region, 10 February 2025

The annual OSCE Conference on addressing anti-Semitism opened today, February 10, in Helsinki. The conference is part of the OSCE's work on combating intolerance. In addition to anti-Semitism, the conference touches upon discrimination faced by Muslims, Christians and representatives of other religions.

During its membership of the UN Human Rights Council between 2022 and 2024, Finland defended universal human rights and the multilateral rules-based system. Finland’s key priorities were to ensure accountability and gender equality and to promote and defend the rights of women and girls, Indigenous Peoples, persons with disabilities and LGBTI persons.

The informal meeting of the EU ministers for development will take place on 10–11 February 2025 in Warsaw, Poland. Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Ville Tavio will represent Finland at the meeting.

In a joint letter, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Ireland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, Romania, and Sweden call on G7 states to take additional steps to reduce the revenues earned by Russia from the sale of its energy carriers.