Ministry for Foreign Affairs presenting itself at the SuomiAreena event in Pori
In July, Ministry for Foreign Affairs will act as one of the main partners in the already established SuomiAreena event in Pori, organised by the City of Pori and MTV3. Pori will offer a host of interesting debates and civic events on 14-17 July.
On Wednesday, 15 July, moderated by Suvi-Anne Siimes, Jorma Ollila, Non-Executive Chairman of Nokia and Royal Dutch Shell, President Martti Ahtisaari and author Kjell Westö will ponder in an open debate the Finnish brand, a widely debated topic in recent times, under the heading “The country of eternal fair weather – The Finnish brand 2020”. The debate, open for everyone interested, will be held on the inner courtyard of Antintalo 2 from 12 noon to 1:30 pm. Live webcast of the brand debate can also be viewed at the websites of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, SuomiAreena and MTV3.
On the same day, Wednesday, 15 July, Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb has invited high-level opinion leaders to Pori. The seminar for invited guests “Yes we can? Europe 2009-2014” will be organised at the Promenade Centre at 2:00-4:00 pm. The guests discussing the future of Europe include Quentin Peel, International Affairs Editor of the Financial Times, Klaus-Dieter Frankenberger, Foreign Editor of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, and Peter Wolodarski, Political Editor of the Dagens Nyheter. The seminar will be hosted by Arno Ahosniemi, Editor-in-Chief of the Pohjalainen newspaper. This event is for the invited guests only and it will be held in English.
On Thursday, 16 July, Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb and two former foreign ministers, i.e. the current Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Paavo Väyrynen and Member of Parliament Erkki Tuomioja, will discuss foreign political affairs on the courtyard of the Pori City Hall at 10:30-11:45 am. This event is open for everyone. Citizens can send questions to the current and former foreign ministers in advance via the front page of SK24 online service of the Satakunnan Kansa newspaper. In addition to attending the event at the City Hall, people can also follow a live webcast of the debate at the websites of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, SuomiAreena and MTV3.
On the same day, Thursday, 16 July, several representatives of the management and ambassadors from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs will appear on stage at the Eetunaukio Square between 12:00 noon and 2:30 pm. They will be interviewed about such topics as the economic crisis, NATO, the year of changes in the EU, the Baltic Sea, Russia and Africa. Ministers Stubb and Väyrynen and Secretary of State Pertti Torstila from the Ministry will also be on stage answering the questions from the public.
On Friday, 17 July, at 11:30 am-12:00 noon, the Satakunta Museum will show marketing films for Finland from the 1920s to the 21st century. Accompaniment for the first Finnish propaganda film, Finlandia, from 1922 will be provided by Trio Matti band. In addition, parts of the new presentation film for Finland “Finland 4 You” will be premiered during the event.
The Ministry for Foreign Affairs will present its activities at 10:00 am-5:00 pm in two tents for three days, from Wednesday, 15 July, until Friday, 17 July. The first tent will present foreign and security policy, trade and development policy, the European Union and the consular services, and the second one will display the development policy campaign “What do people need”.
Additional information: Director Juha Markkanen, Unit for Communications, tel. +358 40 520 3925, Project Coordinator Kanerva Kuisma, tel. +358 40 504 7251, and Attaché Jutta Hinkkanen, tel. +358 40 739 4318