India-Finland ties are underpinned by common values of democracy, freedom & rule of law

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Wednesday held a wide-ranging discussion on further strengthening bilateral relations with Finland's Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto.

The two also exchanged views about the situation in Afghanistan, EAM Jaishankar tweeted after the conversation. India and Finland have cooperated in the past on humanitarian support in the war-ravaged country, he added.

The tweet by EAM Jaishankar said that he held a wide ranging discussion with Foreign Minister Haavisto and noted the steady growth of their bilateral cooperation. They agreed to work to strengthen it further in 2022.

The tweet added that the two ministers exchanged views about Afghanistan in detail. “India and Finland have cooperated in the past on humanitarian support there. Expect to work closely with each other in international organisations including the UN Human Rights Council,” his tweet noted.

India and Finland share warm and friendly relations underpinned by common values of democracy, freedom, rule of law and respect for human rights.

On November 24 last year, the two sides had reviewed various facets of their relationship at the 11th Foreign Office Consultations (FOC) in Helsinki.

They had agreed to explore cooperation in new areas like vocational education, space, startups, health and pharmaceuticals, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had said in a statement.

Both sides had also reviewed the progress made since the Virtual Summit held on March 16, 2021 between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Prime Minister Sanna Marin.

The Virtual Summit had added a strong momentum to bilateral relations, the MEA had said.