Speech by President of The Republic of Finland Tarja Halonen at the Parliamentary luncheon in Canberra, 14 February 2007

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It is a great pleasure to be here in Australia. I am very honoured to have this possibility to speak before such a distinguished audience. Twenty-two years have passed since a President of Finland has paid an official visit to Australia and spoke in this house. My welcome here has been very warm - and I am not referring to the fact that it was -20 degrees centigrade when we left Finland with my husband. I am simply moved by the overwhelming Australian hospitality.

Our countries are far apart geographically but we share the same values. Democracy, respect for human rights and rule of law are close to our hearts. It is interesting how two nations, living in such different climatic conditions, have so many similarities. The down-to-earth attitude towards life – so characteristic for Australians - is typical for the Finns too.

Most of Finns live in cities and towns, but longing for outdoor life is very present in the folklore and popular culture. We are used to live in a scarcely populated country. Personal qualities are often measured with attributes instrumental for the subsistence in the countryside. One is supposed to be hardworking, self-sufficient, and reliable with a can-do and no-nonsense attitude. I guess that this sounds quite familiar also in Australia.

The relations between our countries are excellent. Despite the distance, we have seen increased interaction and quite many delegations travelling both ways. The most recent highlight was the visit of Foreign Minister Alexander Downer, who paid an official visit to Finland last September, combining it to the bi-annual EU-Australia ministerial meeting. We were very pleased to have Mr. Downer as our guest.

A contributing factor to the good relations between our countries is the presence of an almost 30 thousand strong Finnish community in Australia. This number might sound quite small in absolute figures, whereas the positive impact of Finnish community on Australia is much bigger. In fact, the first Finn to step on Australian soil was Mr Herman Spöring, a member of Captain Cook's crew approaching Australia in 1770. It appears that most of the drawings and scientific notes that Captain Cook took home, were prepared by Mr. Spöring. I am pleased to note that there is a street in Canberra named after Mr. Spöring to honour his work.

In recent years, we have seen a steady growth of trade between our countries. Traditionally, Finland has exported more than imported but this trend seems to have reversed last year. According to our statistics over the ten first months of last year, the value of Australian exports to Finland was 40 per cent higher than our export to Australia. Although the final trade figures are not yet available we have reason to expect an increase in the value of the total trade with 10 - 15% last year. Our Finance Ministers´ signed in November last year an "Agreement for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Respect to Taxes on Income". We believe this agreement will further enhance trade and investments between our countries.

Accompanying me on this State Visit to Australia is a team of first rank Finnish innovation specialists. The idea is to compare notes with Australian innovation strategists and develop partnerships. We Finns have a strong notion that a nation should constantly reinvent itself in order to keep up with the global division of labour. We are looking forward to a fruitful exchange of views and ideas. If we can find mutually complementary successful ways to cope with globalisation, we Finns could, perhaps, simply respond to the future globalisation challenges with an all-Australian saying: no worries, mate.

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Being here, far away from my own country, it is only appropriate to note that the whole humankind share a common world. New global security challenges we face have to do with climate change, international terrorism, contagious diseases, legal and illegal migration, and extreme poverty. Especially environmental issues have very rapidly become issues of day-to-day politics in the form of floods, droughts and energy crises.

I am well aware that our respective countries took different approaches towards the Kyoto Protocol. Time is flying and the term of the Kyoto Protocol is coming to an end. I have come to Australia with an open mind and I am interested to hear your views on how best to tackle our common issue; climate change.

No nation can cope with today’s global challenges alone. Responding to these challenges and problems requires multilateral international cooperation and action. This could be best coordinated by the United Nations and its organizations. However, it is becoming very urgent indeed to strengthen such cooperation. In my opinion, our two nations have a lot to give in this cooperation and we should increase our joint effort to this end.

Once again, thank you very much for the opportunity to visit your great country and thank you for your attention.