Prime Minister Orpo to attend EU summit and Milan–Cortina Winter Olympics

Prime Minister Petteri Orpo will travel to Belgium this week to attend an informal meeting of EU leaders. He will also visit the Milan–Cortina Winter Olympics in Italy.

EU leaders will meet at the Alden Biesen castle in northeastern Belgium on Thursday 12 February. This informal leaders’ retreat will discuss boosting EU competitiveness in a new geoeconomic context, especially through strengthening the single market.

Prime Minister Petteri Orpo points out that bold and forward-looking decisions are necessary as global competition intensifies.

"The EU must strengthen its trade partnerships around the world. At the same time, the single market should be deepened and harmful dependencies reduced," Prime Minister Orpo says.

Leaders will discuss how the EU should strategically position itself in the changing world economy. The discussion will begin with a presentation by Mario Draghi, the former prime minister of Italy and former president of the European Central Bank, who drafted a report on the future of European competitiveness in 2024.

Other topics for discussion include the EU’s strategic measures and how to leverage the single market’s growth potential. Former Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta, who prepared a report on the future of the single market in 2024, will present his views on the matter. The annual single market and competitiveness report, published on 30 January, will also provide a framework for the discussions.

More information on Finland’s positions for the informal meeting of EU leaders in Belgium is available in the Ministerial Committee on European Union Affairs press release of 6 February.

Orpo to visit Milan–Cortina Winter Olympics

Prime Minister Orpo will visit the Milan–Cortina Winter Olympics in Italy. He will attend an official event of the Finnish Olympic Team, meet athletes and watch sports in which Finns are competing. The Winter Olympics take place between 6 and 22 February in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo in northern Italy.

Inquiries, EU leaders’ retreat: Tuomas Tikkanen, Senior Adviser to the Prime Minister in European Affairs, tel. +358 40 523 5768, Elisa Tarkiainen, Special Adviser for EU Affairs, +358 50 595 7751 and Marko Ruonala, Chief Communications Specialist, +358 50 522 82 33, Prime Minister's Office. 

Inquiries, Winter Olympics: Tuomas Tikkanen, tel. +358 40 523 5768, and Veera Svahn, Special Adviser, +358 40 020 5191.