On October 29, 2012, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Song Tao held the consultations between the foreign ministries of China and Finland with Secretary of State Pertti Torstila of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland. Song also met respectively with Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs Erkki Tuomioja, Minister for European Affairs and Foreign Trade Alexander Stubb and Secretary General Teemu Tanner of the Office of the President of Finland.

Song Tao Meets with Finnish Minister for Foreign Affairs Erkki Tuomioja

Song said that China and Finland are friendly to each other in tradition. In recent years, pragmatic cooperation between the two sides in various fields has yielded fruitful results. China attaches importance to developing relations with Finland, On the basis of such principles as mutual respect, equal treatment and mutual benefit, China is willing to enhance bilateral political mutual trust, expand bilateral economic and trade cooperation, promote bilateral cultural exchanges, strengthen bilateral communication and coordination in international affairs and jointly push bilateral relations for greater progress.

The Finnish side said that the bilateral relations between Finland and China have been developing smoothly. Finland spoke highly of China's contributions to the development of world economy. Finland regards China as an important partner and is willing to make joint efforts with the Chinese side to boost bilateral cooperation in various fields including politics, economy, environment, innovation and culture.

Song Tao Meets with Minister for European Affairs and Foreign Trade Alexander Stubb

The Finnish side presented an update on the progress of EU's efforts to deal with the debt crisis and the European integration. Song stressed that China supports EU's efforts to resolve the debt problem and China supports the European integration. China believes that a prosperous, stable, united Europe is in line with the interests of the world and China.

The two sides also exchanged views on the situation in Syria, the Iranian nuclear issue and other topics of mutual interest.

Song Tao Meets with Secretary General Teemu Tanner of the Office of the President of Finland

During his stay in Finland, Song was invited to attend a seminar organized by the Finnish Institute of International Affairs and delivered a keynote speech entitled "A Better Future for China-EU relations".

Chinese Ambassador to Finland Huang Xing was also present at the above-mentioned activities.

Song Tao Delivers a Keynote Speech at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs