As 2015 marks the 65th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Finland Vice-Premier Liu Yandong is on official visit to the Nordic country.
On June 12 she met Finnish President Sauli Niinisto, Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipila and Speaker of the Finnish Parliament Maria Lohela in Helsinki.
“China and Finland should integrate bilateral cooperation with China’s major projects, including the Belt and Road Initiative, international cooperation on production capacity and construction of free trade zones,” said Vice-Premier Liu Yandong.
China and Finland have been developing their friendship as well as deepening and expanding bilateral cooperation, and the Sino-Finnish relationship has become a leading example of relationships between countries with different circumstances and institutions, Liu also remarked.
Her visit to Finland aims to implement the agreement between President Xi Jinping and his Finnish counterpart, Niinisto, on developing a new type of cooperative partnership between the two countries, and to discuss with the new Finnish government pushing forward the bilateral relationship, she added.
“Finland attaches great importance to its relationship with China, and is willing to take part actively in China’s strategies, such as the Belt and Road initiatives,” Niinisto said.
Prime Minister Sipila appreciated the future-oriented new-type cooperative partnership, proposed by Niinisto and President Xi Jinping in 2013. He said he hoped the two countries will strengthen cooperation in trade and investment, research and development, clean technology, environmental protection and medical services.
Finland was one of the first western countries that recognized New China established in 1949, and the bilateral partnership has set up an example for countries with different national conditions and social systems to develop their cooperation, China’s Vice-Premier also said.
Liu will conclude her visit in Finland on June 14, and will then visit the Czech Republic and attend Sino-Central and Eastern Europe Health Ministers Forum.
Source: The State Council – The People’s Republic of China
