The eighth ASEM Summit (Asia-Europe Meeting) will be held in Brussels, the capital of the current EU presidency country Belgium, on 4-5 October. Prime Minister Mari Kiviniemi will represent Finland in the summit.
The parties involved in ASEM cooperation are the 27 Member States of the European Union, the 10 Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) plus China, Japan, South Korea, India, Pakistan and Mongolia. The members also include the European Commission and the ASEAN Secretariat. Three new countries are to accede in Brussels: Russia, Australia and New Zealand.
The main theme of the meeting will be the international economic and financial crisis. The meeting will also discuss the climate change and ways to strengthen the multilateral trade system. The meeting will be chaired for the first time by President of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy.
Several bilateral meetings will take place in connection with the ASEM Summit. Prime Minister Kiviniemi will have discussions, for example, with the Prime Minister of Vietnam, Nguyen Tan Dung.
Prime Minister Kiviniemi will be accompanied on the trip by her husband, CEO Juha Louhivuori.
