Speech by President of the Republic Tarja Halonen at a dinner for the diplomatic corps at the Presidential Palace, 17 April 2008

(check against delivery)

My husband and I take great pleasure in inviting members of the diplomatic corps to this traditional spring banquet. Those of you who have been in Helsinki for a longer time know that this year we have not been having normal winter weather. The Gulf of Finland did not freeze over at all this winter, and here in the south of the country we have had very little snow.

However, one or two exceptional winters do not in themselves indicate climate change — the longer-term trends are what count. This was also what Doctor Pachauri, the Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, said on his visit to Finland in February. At the same time, he noted that an increasing number of studies are finding that human beings are responsible for a significant part of the climate change which we are now experiencing.

Last year on this same occasion, I mentioned that I was cautiously optimistic that awareness of our responsibility with regard to climate change is increasing. And it is certainly true. The United Nations High-Level Event on Climate Change last September and the Climate Change Conference on Bali in December demonstrated that mitigating climate change has finally become a worldwide political goal. I believe that we have opened up new paths that will lead to successful outcomes at the Copenhagen climate conference in 2009.

The well-being of humankind is not enough: our well-being must go hand in hand with the well-being of nature. The efforts towards a fairer globalization have served well in preparing us to meet the broader challenges of sustainable development. We must see social justice and ecologically sustainable development together. Furthermore, climate change will affect the poorest areas of the world the hardest. It is therefore particularly unfortunate that the development assistance of the European Union has decreased and fallen short of the EU’s own goals, as Commissioner Michel and Mr Schiltz, the Luxembourg Minister of Trade and Development, reminded us recently.

The industrialized countries must show solidarity towards the developing countries. The Millennium Declaration and Millennium Development Goals of the United Nations are our joint pledge to create a better future for us all. We do have the means for this. Future generations will judge whether we had the will.

The viewpoint of women must be taken into account in all matters related to climate change. In many developing countries, women will be the hardest hit by the effects of climate change, whether in finding water or firewood or other tasks essential for everyday survival. But I also believe that the women of the developing countries are a resource that may be crucial in bringing about change. Therefore we need to help them.

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Finland is and wants to be an active player in international affairs, as a Member of the European Union and of the world community. We believe in cooperation and favour a multilateral approach. A strong United Nations is important — for us all.

Democracy, human rights and the rule of law, social justice and sustainable development are still the best guarantees of a lasting peace. These cornerstones of the concept of broad security are also prominently present in the programme of the Finnish Chairmanship of the OSCE, and we are doing our best to achieve progress.

Finland has made an active contribution to peacekeeping and crisis management operations for more than 50 years. We have troops currently involved in UN, EU and NATO operations all over the world. In case of a crisis or conflict, getting troops quickly to crisis points has emerged as a shared challenge. Last year, Finland participated in an EU Battlegroup together with Germany and the Netherlands. At the moment, we are on readiness duty in the Nordic Battlegroup of the EU together with Sweden, Norway, Estonia and Ireland. Finland has also decided to participate in supplementary activities of the NATO Response Force. However, we are not planning to take part in the rotation.

As a ‘Partnership for Peace’ country, Finland participated in the NATO summit in Bucharest. I am particularly pleased that NATO appreciates the input of long-standing partner countries in crisis management operations. The ‘Partnership for Peace’ programme is an important form of cooperation for Finland. The Partnership for Peace countries of the European Union have a lot of common in this co-operation.

The Afghanistan session of the summit clearly demonstrated how important close cooperation between organizations and between military and civilian players is. The Bucharest declaration stresses the need to improve the NATO-EU strategic partnership to achieve closer cooperation and greater efficiency, and to avoid unnecessary duplication in a spirit of transparency, and respecting the autonomy of the two organizations.

Nation-building takes time, and Afghanistan needs long-term commitments from its international partners and comprehensive support. Improving the status of women and girls forms part of this process. I am very happy that, at the Afghanistan session in Bucharest, the international community unanimously supported the strengthening of the role of the UN in coordinating international action.

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A new white paper on national security and defence policy is being prepared in Finland. Once the report is approved, it will be backed by all of the relevant bodies: the Parliament, the Government and the President. This will provide a solid basis for our action. You may be sure that there will be a lively debate in Finland about the white paper, although it is anticipated that consensus will eventually be reached.

In this context, I would further like to note that Finland is finalising her national action plan on the implementation of United Nations Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security.

Ladies and gentlemen, I believe that this year in Finland will be interesting for you. The municipal elections in the autumn and the political debate preceding them are an important event in Finnish society. After all, we are a Nordic welfare society, where the local authorities are largely responsible for the welfare of their citizens, for example through extensive provision of public services.

I would like to extend my warmest thanks to you, members of the diplomatic corps. It is a great pleasure working with you, and I would like to propose a toast to your very good health and to international cooperation.