President Halonen in the Middle East

On her five-day visit to the Middle East, President Halonen met King Abdullah II of Jordan (on the left), President of Israel Shimon Peres and President of the Palestinian National Authority Mahmoud Abbas. Office of the President of the Republic of Finland

The Middle East peace process was the key topic of discussions during the five-day visit of President of the Republic Tarja Halonen to Jordan, Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory on 9-14 October, 2010. According to President Halonen, Finland strongly supports the peace process so that two democratic states, the State of Israel and the Palestinian state could live as good neighbours in peace and security.

First visit to Jordan

The five-day trip to the Middle East began with an official visit to Jordan on 9–11 October. The visit was the first visit to Jordan by a Finnish head of state.

In Amman, President Halonen met King Abdullah II and Prime Minister Samir Rifai as well as members of the Senate led by President of the Senate Taher al-Masri. Discussion topics included the Middle East situation in general and the role of Jordan in the peace process. During the meeting with the King and the luncheon with the Prime Minister the discussions also embraced bilateral relations, which were seen to hold a great deal of potential for closer cooperation.

President Halonen speaks at the state banquet, King Abdullah II (center) and Dr Pentti Arajärvi (right) listen. Copyright © Office of the President of the Republic of Finland

Careful optimism

President Halonen pointed out that Finland has a lot of expertise to offer in the field of energy efficiency and water consumption. Other areas highlighted as being of interest from the point of view of potential cooperation included IT and other fields of high technology as well as tourism. The elections to be held in Jordan in November were also discussed.

Concerning the Middle East situation, President Halonen was keen to hear Jordanian views. When meeting Finnish press in Amman the President characterised her own attitude as carefully optimistic. She also pointed out that the visit was a sign of support for the peace process both on behalf of Finland and from the EU perspective.

The visit to Jordan by President Halonen also included visits to the Baptismal Site in the Jordan Valley and the ancient, rock-cut Nabataean city of Petra.

State visit to Israel

On 11–13 October President Halonen and Dr Arajärvi made a state visit to Israel. In Jerusalem President Halonen met President Shimon Peres, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top government officials.

The discussions of President Halonen and President Peres revolved particularly around the situation in the Middle East and the excellent bilateral relations between the two countries. According to President Halonen, the discussions with Prime Minister Netanyahu were very open and direct.

At the state dinner, the President praised the active role of President Peres as an advocate of peace. “Defending peace in the midst of a conflict is challenging. This, however, has not discouraged you. The Middle East peace process needs a strong voice of peace in a situation where there continue to be sceptics.”

President Halonen lays a wreath at Jerusalem's Holocaust memorial. Behind, Minister for Foreign Affairs Alexander Stubb and Dr Pentti Arajärvi. Copyright © Office of the President of the Republic of Finland

 Strong support for peace process

“Finland stresses the need to bring the peace negotiations to a conclusion as soon as possible. This would mean that two democratic states, the State of Israel and the Palestinian state, live as good neighbours in peace and security – as expressed in the European Union Council Conclusions of December 2009. We strongly support the Middle East peace process,” said President Halonen in her speech.

On Tuesday President Halonen also laid a wreath at Yad Vashem, the memorial to the victims of the Holocaust, and visited a museum dedicated to the history of the Holocaust in Jerusalem. In the message she wrote in the Guest Book the President said that the victims of the Holocaust – “a dark hour in the history of humanity” – could be remembered by “respecting human rights everywhere and for everyone”. President Halonen also planted a tree of peace in support of the Jewish National Fund.

Occupied Palestinian territories

On 14 October 2010 President Halonen made an official visit to the occupied Palestinian territories, which concluded the five-day visit to the Middle East. In Ramallah in the West Bank President Halonen met the President of the Palestinian National Authority Mahmoud Abbas, who talked about the current status of the peace talks. Participants at the luncheon held after the talks also included Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, Foreign Minister Riyad al-Maliki and Saeb Erekat, the chief Palestinian negotiator in the peace process.

Prime Minister Sala Fayyad shows President Halonen and Dr Arajärvi the locations of the colonies on the map. Copyright © Office of the President of the Republic of Finland

 Prime Minister Fayyad presented to President Halonen the situation in Ramallah and the location of the colonies visible from the hills of East Jerusalem.

At the press conference, President Halonen emphasized that Finland to support the Palestinians in the peace process to establish a state of Palestine. The main fields of Finland’s support are education, water and sanitation, land registration and security.

President Halonen was accompanied by Minister for Foreign Affairs Alexander Stubb.

President Halonen last visited the Middle East in October 2009, when her itinerary took her to Egypt and Syria.

President of the Palestinian National Authority Mahmoud Abbas visited Finland in April 2006. The King of Jordan Abdullah II and Queen Rania visited Finland in August 2006.

• 10/12/2010 Speech at a state banquet hosted by President of Israel Shimon Peres
• 10/10/2010 Remarks at the dinner hosted by King of Jordan Abdullah II in Amman

Photos from Jordania

Photos from Israel

Photos from the occupied Palestinian territories