Speech by President of the Republic Tarja Halonen at the Banquet for the State Visit by President of the Republic of Latvia Vaira Vike-Freiberga on 25 April 2006

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It gives me great pleasure to welcome you, President and Professor Freibergs, to Finland. I know that thanks to many visits and meetings, you are both well acquainted with Finland and us Finns.

The Finns and the Latvians are bound by strong historical ties. Our bilateral relations are close and very good. We live on the shores of the same sea, and regional cooperation has linked us for a long time. At the individual level, Latvians and Finns share a lot in terms of their way of life, their values and their feelings. For example, people in both countries consider a close relationship with nature very important.

Friendship societies, twinning of towns and cultural exchange between organizations and individuals have existed between Finland and Latvia for a long time. These bonds have remained active throughout different times of history.

Madam President, tomorrow you will be opening an exhibition of works by Latvian painter Janis Rozentals here in Helsinki. Having this exhibition organized in Helsinki is a fine tribute to our strong cultural relationship. Rozentals had an exceptionally close relationship with Finland; after all, he spent a lot of time here, and he was married to Elli Forssell, a famous Finnish singer. Also, the Latvian friendship society in Finland is named after Janis Rozentals.

In May 2001, I paid a state visit to Latvia together with my husband. Europe Day, 9 May, was celebrated during my visit, and this in a way symbolized the ongoing development in your country. Latvia was pursuing a determined course towards joining the European Union. Latvia’s goal of NATO membership has also come true.

During our visit, we enjoyed the warm reception and hospitality, and we had the opportunity to see at first hand how Latvia was actively preparing to meet the future. Our bilateral relations were in a period of rapid expansion and diversification. Our shared goals have been to establish democracy and the rule of law, to respect human rights and to build the civil society. We have been cooperating particularly in matters concerning the environment, judicial and police administration, border surveillance and the language programme.

Trade between our countries has increased, and many educational and research institutions have established permanent cooperation. Finns have become one of the largest groups of tourists to Latvia. The ice hockey world championships this spring will no doubt attract a large number of Finns to Riga.

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Finland wants to be active in developing a European Union based on openness and the equality of member states. The EU must be credible in the eyes of its citizens. Citizens can only feel that the EU is their own if they feel its positive impact in their everyday lives.

Our own region, the Baltic region, is an important cooperation region. Maritime policy, transport and environmental issues are good examples of areas where the best way to achieve positive results is to act together. There are many tools for promoting cooperation in the Baltic region. Latvia is today, like Estonia and Lithuania, a member of the Nordic Investment Bank, and all the countries in the Baltic region belong to the Council of the Baltic Sea States.

In the latter half of this year, Finland will be holding the EU Presidency. Our principal goals in external relations are to develop relations between the EU and Russia, to strengthen the northern dimension and generally to enhance the external relations of the EU. Good bilateral relations help manage the Presidency, and in this we will be relying also on the support of Latvia.

Not even the largest actors can cope by themselves in facing the rapidly changing challenges and threats of an increasingly globalized world. Large and small countries alike are worried about the future. We must take the initiative in building a better tomorrow for ourselves and for the international community as a whole. By taking an active role in the United Nations and in other international organizations, we can work to promote stable development and a fairer and safer world.

Responding to the challenges of globalization requires commitment to realistic competitiveness targets and to sustainable and socially equitable values. It is particularly important to invest in human resources. Lifelong learning and in general promoting know-how and innovation are important to us. Finland has chosen to retain the welfare society model. It safeguards the everyday lives of citizens and has undoubtedly helped Finland to become one of the most competitive countries in the world.

Madam President, you have been in office in the period during which Latvia’s goals of EU membership and NATO membership have come true. You have talked for your country in various contexts, thus strengthening the position of Latvia in the international community.

I value the talks we have had and our exchange of opinions, and I hope that we will have a chance to talk further on many occasions in the future, for example at meetings of European Presidents.

Please join me in a toast to President Vike-Freiberga and Professor Freibergs, to the prosperity of Latvia and its people, and to the further development of the close relations between our two countries!