(Translation)

SPEECH BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF FINLAND,

MR. MARTTI AHTISAARI, AT A BANQUET HOSTED BY THE PRESIDENT OF UKRAINE, MR. LEONID KUCHMA IN KYIV 31.3.1998

On my own and my wife's behalf, I wish to thank President Kuchma for his invitation to visit Ukraine. I am certain that we shall be returning to get to know more of this country.

Mr. President, we have met on several occasions since your visit to Finland in February 1996. I appreciate our friendship and our forthright and useful discussions. The intense pace of European summit and conference diplomacy reflects the speed of change in our continent.

My visit coincides with a milestone in Ukraine's development. That it was timed to take place in the days immediately after the elections for the Verkhovna Rada is a demonstration of confidence in Ukraine's young democracy. Power belongs to the people who express their will in elections. That is something for us to respect. I wish also in this context to express my support and esteem for President Kuchma's leadership. It is not easy to pilot a country along the rocky road of essential reforms.

The history of Ukraine is part of the history of Europe. The links that existed between Kyivan Rus and Scandinavia and Medieval Europe are part of our shared past.

The history of Ukraine is one of struggle for freedom and battle against invaders. It is unlikely that anyone suffered more during the Second World War than the Ukrainian people, whose pain began already during the bloody years of forced collectivisation. Today, the histories of Finland and Ukraine meet on the road of peace and cooperation in a uniting Europe.

Ukraine has consolidated her position in Europe. The number of agreements made last year and their scope are impressive. A basic treaty with Russia, agreements concerning the Black Sea fleet, an agreement with Romania on neighbourly relations and a border treaty with Belarus demonstrate the political will to resolve problems and proceed on the road of cooperation. Additionally, Ukraine has agreements with Poland and Moldova. The Ukraine-NATO charter is likewise an important and historic document.

The Partnership and Cooperation Pact between Ukraine and the European Union entered into force a month ago. This agreement is also the foundation for economic relations between Finland and Ukraine, even though our trade is still very modest. Through this agreement, the European Union and its fifteen member states commit themselves to assisting and supporting Ukraine on her road of reforms.

Enlargement of the European Union will have a positive effect also on Ukraine's development. With the accession of Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary to membership, Ukraine will become a next-door neighbour of the Union. In less than two years from now, the euro will be the main currency of invoicing in Ukraine's foreign trade. That will bring your country within the compass of the currency stability that is being striven for and which the euro will help achieve.

Change in the European Union and its forthcoming eastward enlargement are a major challenge also for Finland. The Finnish Government has presented an initiative concerning the European Union's northern dimension. Our initiative is founded on the conception that the process of convergence between the European Union, the states that are candidates for membership and cooperation partners is rapidly gaining strength. Links between the EU and north-west Russia are improving.

Therefore, Europe's northern dimension also has a bearing on Ukraine. In particular the development of European transport and energy networks is a factor that strongly unites us. The old Viking routes once led to Constantinople. Today, all of the European traffic corridors running through Finland into Russia continue to Ukraine and then onwards not only to "Constantinople", but also across the Black Sea to the Caucasus, the Caspian Sea and via Central Asia all the way to China. Something else that we share is environmental problems, which do not respect frontiers. The phasing out of Chernobyl is a matter that affects the whole of Europe, and in which also Finland is participating.

I want in this conjunction to express my strong support for President Kuchma's initiative to promote the cooperation between the Baltic and Black Sea regions of which there is a really ancient tradition. I am also personally prepared to attend the summit that Ukraine is arranging on the Black Sea coast in autumn 1999, when Finland will hold the Presidency of the EU.

The size of your country and its history ensure Ukraine's place in the new Europe. In the final analysis, Ukraine's influence will be based on economic performance and internal unity. We understand well that shaking off the ballast of the past can not be done in the blinking of an eye. Reforms will have to be long-term and consistent, and they will need the support of the people.

Both Finland and Ukraine are bound by general European norms as well as the principles of the United Nations, the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the Council of Europe. Geopolitics does not provide an answer to today's problems. What is decisive is economic and political stability. Finland's historical experience shows that by participating in international exchanges a country can guarantee its population's wellbeing.

I wish to propose a toast to the people of Ukraine and their success as well as to you, Mr. President and Mrs. Kuchma, personally, and to assure you that Finland and the European Union support Ukraine and want to help your country take its rightful place in the new Europe.