Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin visited Sweden on 8 January. It is a tradition among Finnish heads of government, after taking office, to make their first bilateral visit to Sweden, the main partner among the Nordic countries.
In the neighbouring country, Marin met her colleague, Prime Minister Stefan Löfven, at the Swedish Prime Minister’s summer residence in Harpsund.
On a day full of bad news from the Middle East, Prime Minister Marin expressed her condolences to the families and friends of the Swedish people who died in the plane crash occurred in Iran. At least ten Swedes -among them a entire family- are reported to be among the victims, according to the Ukranian authorities.
The discussions also focused on the current situation in the Middle East and, in particular, Iran's missile attacks, the Finnish government said in a statement.
The Prime Ministers also discussed major power relations, security and defence cooperation between Sweden and Finland, and especially the importance of stable security policy in the Baltic Sea and the Arctic region.
Bilateral relations
In terms of bilateral relations, the Prime Ministers had a wide-ranging discussion.
"Cooperation between our countries is exceptionally close, and we want to develop it in the future, too. Close and straightforward cooperation makes the Nordic countries a bigger player than our size would suggest both in Europe and internationally,” said Prime Minister Marin.
Marin and Löfven noted that their countries’ 25 years of EU membership had further deepened their cooperation.
“We agree on many issues related to the Union. Together we can show strong leadership, for example in climate issues, the rule of law and transparency,” said Prime Minister Marin.
On January 10 Prime Minister Marin will travel to Estonia to meet with her colleague Prime Minister Ratas.
