The Kultaranta Talks 2025 were hosted by President of the Republic of Finland Alexander Stubb at the presidential summer residence in Naantali on 16–17 June. The theme of this year’s foreign and security policy discussion event was The Changing World Order – Old Meets New.
President Stubb summarised the conclusions of the event in his closing statement.
“The dialogue was open and lively. I hope that we can continue to discuss in the same way in the future, with respect for each other,” President Stubb said.
According to the President, the aim of the event was to find tools to understand and manage the ongoing transformation of the world order.
In his speech, President Stubb raised the issue of the Global South. For the multilateral rules-based system to endure, the power structures within the institutions that support it must be reformed.
“This means that the global South must be given more power, which is perhaps something we in the West rarely recognise,” President Stubb said.
“We wanted to invite international guests to Finland to introduce them to the Finnish approach and, at the same time, offer the Finnish audience international perspectives on the topic.”
The Transformation of the World Order
The Kultaranta Talks began on Monday 16 June with an international day examining the changing world order. The discussions were held in English and moderated by journalists Fareed Zakaria and Francine Lacqua.
In the first debate, President Stubb, President of Latvia Edgars Rinkēvičs and President of Estonia Alar Karis discussed Europe in the Shockwaves.
The second session covered the topic of Accumulation of Shocks at the Global Level – What the West Should Understand. The panel included Elina Valtonen, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland; Musalia Mudavadi, Prime Cabinet Secretary of Kenya; Arnoldo André Tinoco, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Costa Rica; Olushegun Adjadi Bakari, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Benin and Russ Jalichandra, Vice Minister for Foreign Affairs of Thailand.
On Monday, the third discussion was entitled Security Policy: Transatlantic Transitions. The panellists were Rachel Ellehuus, Director General, Royal United Services Institute (RUSI); Camille Grand, Distinguished Policy Fellow, European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), and Jeremy Shapiro, Director of Research, European Council on Foreign Relations (EFCR).
The title of the fourth and final discussion of the day was International relations: Managing Interdependencies. The theme was addressed by Carl Bildt, Co-Chair, European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR); Mathias Döpfner, Chairman and CEO, Axel Springer SE, and Børge Brende, President and CEO, World Economic Forum (WEF).
Finland’s Role in a Changing World
On Tuesday 17 June, the spotlight was on Finland’s role in a changing world, with the debates conducted in Finnish. Journalist Seija Vaaherkumpu was the moderator of the day.
During the first debate, President Alexander Stubb and Speaker of the Finnish Parliament Jussi Halla-aho discussed Values or Realism, and how these two perspectives affect Finnish foreign policy.
The second session dealt with issues concerning Finland in the Multipolar World. The subject was deliberated by Mikko Hautala, Chief Geopolitical & Government Relations Officer, Nokia Corporation; Risto E. J. Penttilä, Secretary General, European Business Leaders’ Convention, and journalist Iida Tikka.
The final discussion of the event focused on Finland in a multilateral world. The panel consisted of Li Andersson, Member of the European Parliament; Elina Kalkku, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Finland to the United Nations, and Taneli Lahti, Director for Global Issues, European External Action Service.
