Finland could get committee on Arctic affairs

As BarentsObserver reported, Minister Väyrynen visited Arkhangelsk with a delegation of Finnish businessmen the first week of October.

Well back in Helsinki, Minister Paavo Väyrynen yesterday talked with the Parliamentary Foreign Affairs Committee, and told about the large cooperation opportunities for Finnish business he found in Arkhangelsk.

In a press-release posted at the Finnish Government’s website, Väyrynen says Finland has had a strong hold of and strategy for Arctic cooperation.

- We were among the key parties involved in the establishment of the Arctic Council and the Barents Euro-Arctic council and Finland has continued its active participation on both forums. We have also determinedly advocated the cooperation in northern regions in our bilateral relations, Paavo Väyrynen says.

- We used to have an Advisory Committee of Polar Affairs, which has no longer been active for one reason or another. Now we need a stronger organ, which can coordinate Finland’s activities in the Arctic regions. In addition to the central government, it would be important to get the regional representatives, the Sami Parliament and private actors involved in the process, says Väyrynen in the press-release.

Finland’s Foreign Minister, Alexander Stubb, repeted at last week’s Barents Council meeting in Murmansk that Finland has renewed its view on how important the Barents- and Arctic regions are. – The north is one of the sexiest areas in the world, the Finnish Foreign Minister said at the meeting.

In late September, Alexander Stubb presented Finland’s new Arctic Strategy while speaking at the 20th anniversary of the Arctic Centre in Rovaniemi.

- For Finland, the key point is that there can be no new Great Game over the resources in the Arctic. The national knee jerk reflexes and the scramble for the Arctic must be resisted and we must utilize the existing multilateral channels, Stubb said in Rovaniemi, as reported by BarentsObserver.