Finland, Russia agreed on timber trade
Russia will drop its planned hike in timber export tariffs to Finland, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin told his Finnish counterpart Matti Vanhanen today.
Putin, who today arrived in Helsinki for a visit, confirmed that a compromise has been found in the troubled timber trade between the two countries.
-On your request, the Russian government has changed its former decision on the introduction of timber export tariffs, Putin told Vanhanen, a press release from the Russian government reads. -This is done with the aim to help our Finnish colleagues and friends in the times of crisis, Putin added.
The timber trade has over the last year been a major problem issue in Finnish-Russia relations. Russia, which is a major exporter of round timber to Finland, in a bid to strengthen its own processing industry has raised the export tariffs by several hundred percent. That has resulted in serious problems for the Finnish forestry industry which is dependent on the Russian raw materials.
Putin in the meeting also said that the cooperation with Finland is a factor helping Russia overcome current hardships. He especially highlighted the role of energy cooperation, and the stable supplies of Russian oil and gas to Finland.
-All of what Finland needs in the field [of energy] is being supplied regularly and without problems by Russian partners, Putin underlined.
In the bilateral meeting, the two government leaders touched upon as many as 25 issues, Vanhanen said in the press conference following the meeting.
