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24.4.2026 | The informal meeting of heads of state or government in Cyprus on 23–24 April focused on the current geopolitical situation and the proposal for the EU’s next multiannual financial framework.

22.11.2022 | Finland’s Ambassador for Climate Change Jan Wahlberg says that while the Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Egypt has been criticised for its weak results, progress was nevertheless made to help the world’s poorest countries stricken by climate disasters. Future conferences of the parties will decide on the structure of the fund and its sources of finance.

17.6.2022 | EU foreign ministers will convene in Luxembourg on Monday 20 June. Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will represent Finland at the meeting. The main themes on the agenda of the Foreign Affairs Council will be the Horn of Africa, EU relations with Egypt and Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine. Ministers will also have a discussion on the Persian Gulf.

13.12.2021 | Mr President, Excellencies, Distinguished Delegates,

12.6.2025 | On 16 April, the European Commission submitted a proposal to establish a list of safe countries of origin for asylum seekers. The aim is to facilitate a swift examination of asylum applications that are likely to be unfounded: if the applicant comes from a safe country of origin, the examination of their application would be accelerated. The Government informed Parliament of the proposal by submitting a Union communication on 12 June.

17.1.2025 | In their meeting on Friday 17 November, the President of the Republic and the Ministerial Committee on Foreign and Security Policy discussed the surveillance of underwater infrastructure in the Baltic Sea. It is important to intensify cooperation with our partner countries in order to protect maritime infrastructure effectively.

25.8.2025 | "Our task is to promote a world in which as many people as possible—regardless of country of birth and circumstances—can live their lives safely and freely, and be happy. That is Finland’s story."

8.11.2023 | Finland will award a discretionary government grant amounting to EUR 1 million to support the work of the Israeli Red Cross Society, Magen David Adom, in the aftermath of the Hamas attack in October. In addition, Finland will allocate EUR 4 million in support of the humanitarian efforts of the International Committee of the Red Cross in the occupied Palestinian territory (the Gaza Strip and the West Bank) and in Israel.

20.6.2023 | The World Circular Economy Forum sought solutions to problems that are crucial to Earth’s carrying capacity: climate change, the consumption of materials, biodiversity loss and pollution. The Forum strengthened cooperation between Finnish and African actors.

7.8.2023 | Colonel (Ret.) Juha Wihersaari took up his post as Special Adviser to Minister of Transport and Communications Lulu Ranne on 1 August 2023.

30.11.2023 | On Thursday 30 November, the parties to the UN Convention on Climate Change reached an agreement on a fund to compensate for climate loss and damage. The fund has been a high priority especially for small and poor countries.

29.9.2023 | At the presidential session on Friday 29 September, the President of the Republic appointed one new Ambassador and three new non-resident Ambassadors.

12.12.2022 | Finland will participate in the replenishment cycle of the African Development Fund and in the reinforcing of the Fund’s work in the coming years, especially with regard to climate change adaptation. The African Development Fund helps the poorest African countries in coping with the many coinciding crises and in recovering from them.

7.11.2022 | Prime Minister of Finland Sanna Marin spoke at the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, on 7 November 2022. Check against delivery.

4.8.2023 | Summary: Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues. As a result of the war, around four million Ukrainians have applied for temporary protection in the Member States of the European Union. Other migration to the EU is also growing. Both the number of asylum applications submitted in the EU and irregular migration to the EU are on the rise. At the moment, migration pressure is concentrated on the Central Mediterranean route from Tunisia and Libya to Italy.

19.1.2024 | In 2023, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the missions abroad provided consular services to approximately 244,000 customers. The demand for advisory services remained high. Over the course of the year, the Ministry’s 24/7 service was contacted around 8,000 times in total.

21.11.2022 | With respect to agriculture, the aim at the Climate Change Conference COP27 in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt was to complete the work under the Koronivia Joint Work in Agriculture launched in 2017 and to agree on the future of climate work on agriculture under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

1.3.2023 | Finland’s new Special Envoy for Climate Change Kerstin Stendahl has been following international climate and environmental negotiations for nearly three decades. Stendahl has held leading positions in the Ministry of the Environment and in the United Nations, among other places.

19.9.2022 | “The fight for natural resources is a common trigger for conflict in many places. When I was in Uganda, I saw what an immense impact climate change and loss of biodiversity have on people’s lives,” says Anna Merrifield, Director of the recently created Unit for Climate and Environmental Diplomacy at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

31.5.2022 | The high-level UN meeting Stockholm+50 will be held in Stockholm, Sweden on 2–3 June 2022. The meeting will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first UN conference on the environment, assess the environmental actions taken in the past 50 years and present concrete recommendations to improve the state of the environment.