Foreign Minister Soini to attend informal meeting of EU foreign ministers in Tallinn

Press release 151/2017
6 September 2017

An informal meeting of EU foreign ministers (Gymnich) will be held in Tallinn on 7 and 8 September. Finland’s representative at the meeting will be Minister for Foreign Affairs Timo Soini. The topics on the Council’s agenda will include development of EU's defence cooperation, working methods of the EU Foreign Affairs Council, North Korea, the Middle East Peace Process and countering radicalisation and violent extremism.

EU candidate countries’ foreign ministers traditionally attend one of the sessions of the informal meetings of EU foreign ministers. In Tallinn, a working session will be held with the foreign ministers of EU candidate countries for exchanging views on preventing and countering radicalisation and violent extremism and on related cooperation, including tackling the root causes of the phenomenon.

The EU foreign ministers will address the threat to international security posed by the North Korean regime's nuclear tests. The ministers will also deal with the current developments in the Middle East Peace Process and the EU’s role in facilitating the process. The foreign ministers will also deliberate means of developing the work of the EU Foreign Affairs Council, with the aim of greater efficiency and effectiveness in the implementation of the EU Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). In connection with the meeting, the EU foreign affairs and defence ministers will hold a joint meeting to discuss the implementation of the so-called defence package based on the European Council’s conclusions, focusing on the permanent structured cooperation and the European Defence Fund. In addition to Minister Soini, this section of the meeting will also be attended by Minister of Defence Jussi Niinistö.

Foreign Minister Soini will also take part in an informal ministerial lunch meeting of the EU and its Eastern Partnership countries, focusing on cooperation in strengthening security and resilience of societies.

Inquiries: Riikka Taivassalo, Special Adviser to Foreign Minister Soini, tel. +358 295 351 960 and Sari Rautio, European Correspondent, tel. + 358 295 351 534.

The Foreign Ministry’s email addresses are in the format [email protected]