MFA: Ministry for Foreign Affairs and Turku European Forum will intensify cooperation

"The cooperation agreement between the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the European Forum is of great importance for the Finnish EU debate. The agreement brings predictability to preparing a programme of high-quality speakers, strengthens joint networks and the European Forum", says Anders Blom, Chair of Europe Forum Turku and Doctor in Political Science.

"This year's European Forum will include representatives of all key EU actors from the Government to the central bank, from key labour market organisations to higher education institutions, and from civil society and lobbying organisations to Parliament and the European Parliament". According to Blom, the European Forum will also make a significant contribution to the ongoing European Conference on the Future.

"The Ministry for Foreign Affairs has contributed to the European Forum since the very beginning, ministers as well as Europe Information which functions under the Ministry have been involved. We wanted, however, to establish a more permanent partnership as Finland needs a continuous European debate. I believe that through our extensive network of missions, for example, we can bring interesting speakers and viewpoints to the forum, both from the European Union Member States and elsewhere", says Nina Vaskunlahti, Under Secretary of State from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

This year’s Europe Forum will be held in Turku from 25 to 27 August.

Website of the Europe Forum: www.europeforum.fi                                         

Inquiries:

Nina Vaskunlahti, Under Secretary of State, External Economic Relations, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, tel. +358 50 433 7452, nina.vaskunlahti@formin.fi

Anders Blom, Chair of the European Forum in Turku, Doctor in Political Science, tel. +358 400 523 409, andblo@utu.fi