MFA: Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto to visit New York

Minister Pekka Haavisto will meet UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed and Executive Director of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Natalia Kanem. Haavisto will also have meetings with UN senior management to discuss peacebuilding and peacekeeping matters and certain topical regional questions, including the Middle East and Ukraine. The Minister will also meet the President of the Intergovernmental Conference, who is in charge of the ongoing negotiations on a legally binding instrument on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity in open seas and deep seabeds.

The visit paves the way for the United Nations’ high-level week (UNGA 74) to be held in September. The main events of the week will be the Secretary-General’s Climate Summit and a meeting of the UN High-level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF).

“I appreciate Secretary-General Guterres’ strong leadership in matters relating to the strengthening of the multilateral system, the UN’s reform and the fight of climate change. The goals of Finland’s new Government Programme are well in line with the UN’s goals. Finland contributes actively to actions aimed at bolstering the UN’s position and ability to operate effectively, as well as at the implementation of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda.

The topics of discussion will include the Secretary-General’s Climate Summit, the strengthening of mediation and prevention of conflicts, the implementation of the SDGs, and human rights. Minister Haavisto will also express Finland’s wish to get more Finnish experts to posts in the UN system. Topical regional matters, such as the situation in the Middle East and the Persian Gulf and Africa, will also be on the agenda.

“In accordance with Finland’s new Government Programme, one of our foreign policy objectives is to build peace. Conflict prevention, mediation and peacebuilding are Finland’s long-term foreign policy priorities and they are gaining even more importance. Finland aims to increase its participation in the UN’s mediation and dialogue processes and in other similar processes, and this will be indicated in the discussions in New York, too.

“In the discussions in New York, I will also highlight the importance of defending the human rights treaty system and human rights in the UN system,” Haavisto says.

Inquiries: Katja Kalamäki, Diplomatic Adviser to the Minister, tel. +358 295 351 518 and Anna Salovaara, Director, Unit for UN and General Global Affairs, tel. +358 295 350 018

The Foreign Ministry’s email addresses are in the format firstname.lastname@formin.fi.