President Halonen meets EU and Latin American leaders

President of the Republic of Finland Tarja Halonen attended the EU-Latin America/Caribbean Summit in Austria on 12-13 May. After the summit she emphasized that Latin America is an important cooperation partner for the EU and its significance should not be underestimated. The summit dealt with economic relations, democracy and human rights, strengthening multilateral cooperation, fighting terrorism, organized crime and environmental and energy issues.

President of the Republic of Finland Tarja Halonen and UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. Photo: Lehtikuva / AFP Photo

The current dispute between Uruguay and Argentina concerning the construction of a pulp mill was also on the agenda. President Halonen discussed the matter with President Tabare Vazquez of Uruguay on Friday.

President Halonen also held bilateral talks with the presidents of Lithuania and Peru as well as UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, with whom she discussed reforms of the UN.