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Saudi Arabia an Important Country in ME: Halonen

HELSINKI, 21 October 2007 -- Tarja Halonen, president of Finland, who is arriving in the Kingdom today on an official state visit, said she is looking forward to visiting Saudi Arabia, which she described as an "important country" in the Gulf and the Middle East region. In an interview with Arab News, Al-Riyadh newspaper and the Saudi Press Agency, the president said the Kingdom was "very active" in promoting peace in the Middle East and lauded its economic reforms and openness to the international market.

Halonen will be visiting the Kingdom on an invitation from Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah. The visit to Saudi Arabia is the first by a Finnish head of state. The president is expected to discuss with King Abdullah ways to strengthen Saudi-Finnish relations on all fronts. The two leaders will also exchange views on regional and international matters. During her three-day visit, Halonen will meet Crown Prince Sultan, Saudi Arabian General Investment Authority (SAGIA) Gov. Amr Al-Dabbagh, and other Saudi officials.

Finland home to a number of electronic and IT companies, which account for 60 percent of the European country's export revenues seeks to find areas of investment in the Kingdom.

Accompanying the president will be a large delegation of Finnish businessmen who will be meeting their Saudi counterparts in Jeddah. Among important deals that would be signed between the two countries is a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to protect investments.

In her interview, the Finnish president spoke about her historic visit, the topics she would be discussing with King Abdullah, Saudi-Finnish relations, and her views on regional and international matters.

Q: How do you evaluate Saudi-Finnish relations, politically and economically?
A: This is a good opportunity to speak with you. This is the first time for me to visit Saudi Arabia and I am looking forward to this visit to a big and important country in the Gulf area.

Our basic relations are excellent. But we are treating each other as friends. I think we could do much more to further cooperation. We have economic, business relations between us. You are of course a very important producer of different energies. But...we are now exporting more to Saudi Arabia than you are exporting to Finland. I will have a big business delegation with me. Some of them are already acting in Saudi Arabia... I hope that this kind of economic cooperation could increase after the visit.

The second point that I think is very important is that Finland, my country, is a small one with only a five million population. We have been among the best ones in international comparisons, not only in being competitive, but also concerning social justice, health services and education. So...I will also be happy to introduce whether we could have something to share in these fields.

Politically, we have very good relations. We of course here in Finland, like EU members, are looking forward to the Middle East peace process. And if Saudi Arabia takes part in the next peace conference in November, then that would be historic. I do hope that the interest that has been shown by the EU side, and also by your side, will strength the peace process...We are also very active in the United Nations...I would say that we have a good basis to continue discussions.

Q: You just said that the two countries could do more for cooperation. Is education and investment among the fields that the two countries could do more in?
A: Yes, I guess so. I think that your economic situation has advanced very strongly in the last years. I think that we agree that in the future all countries have to invest more and more in education, research and development... The Finnish education system is among the best in the EU. We are the best in mathematics and some other areas. I think that this basis for education is something you would be interested in studying.

Then of course we are interested in you also to further discussions and cooperation in different sectors. I know that your representatives are interested in the health sector. I hope that perhaps in the future your political leaders will visit Finland to see how it works in practice. I see that these are very obvious possibilities for further cooperation.

Q: A large delegation of businessmen will be accompanying you. Will there be any major deals signed during this visit?
A: I think that the presidents or the ministers or the political leaders can in a way open the doors or make the country more interesting. But then of course we are living in a market economy and enterprisers themselves will then decide what to do next. But I will say that these business people that I will have with me some of them are already old friends, some of them are not so much yet are honorable, good business people. I am happy to say that we in Finland demand and request that the business community behaves well. They are good business people... I can say that your people will have an opportunity to see very eminent business leaders.

Q: Will there be any MOUs signed during the visit?
A: I think that the request concerning the protection of investments will be signed by our side. As a matter of fact, it is already quite developed. We are very interested in that because we think that negotiations have gone well. We are minutes away from making a new modern investment agreement concerning the protection of investments.

Q: What are the major topics you will be discussing with Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques?
A: I think that if I divided the items into three parts, then the first thing of course is bilateral relations. The second is political issues...Then I do hope that we will have time for global issues, seeing the common future not only for our countries but for our planet together... I think we all are looking forward to the meeting in December so we can see our common future after Kyoto... I will also be interested in seeing your people, your investments and constructions concerning the new modern Saudi Arabia ... this is to educate me.

Q: Saudi Arabia is witnessing an investment boom. King Abdullah recently inaugurated six economic cities. SAGIA has also licensed hundreds of foreign companies to directly invest in the Kingdom. We are also a country where 70 percent of the population is younger than 21. Will Nokia , being a major technological powerhouse, be among the delegation? And what about the export of know-how to Saudi Arabia to train Saudi youth?
A: Because Nokia and many other international companies have their birthplace here in Finland, which means that since a very long time our population ... has been used to international trade. We are free traders. So in that way, we know that trade between people is important. Communication between people is also very important. That is how Nokia took the so-called (logo) "connecting people," something that fits us very well. Nokia will be among the delegation. I can guarantee that the same Nokia standards exist in different modern IT sectors When you are a nation with a strong young generation, I think it would be very wise to invest in education and the young ones so that they will be ready to take on the challenges of the future. Of course it means to everyone lifelong learning but as I said, we are really good in education and IT, so it is not so bad of a combination for our discussions during the visit.

Q: It took a long time for the EU and the GCC to discuss the agreement for free trade between the two organizations. Are you optimistic as a member of the EU that an agreement will be signed before the end of 2007, especially since next month a major meeting will take place in Brussels on this issue?
A: I sincerely do hope so. When I was foreign minister of my country in 1999, I was the foreign minister representative of the European Union, which has been discussing with you the same subject. So differences will be narrowed to sign it and to start implementation. Let's hope that everything goes well. We need each other and we can be useful to each other.

Q: Speaking about the political situation in the Middle East, the Arab countries have put on the table the Arab initiative for comprehensive peace. In your opinion, what is needed to achieve peace between the Arabs and the Israelis?
A: I hope that good will and understanding ... we consider it very important that you have been active ... it is very welcome. You know that the European Union has been active through the Quartet system. Things could go better .... I hope that the Israeli and Palestinian sides will now see this window of opportunity. We are looking forward to the next peace conference. Of course I am very concerned about living conditions in Gaza. I do hope we can also activate practical approaches to help people make their everyday life more comfortable.

I think that we all have seen opportunities that have been missed. It is time to move further. I met Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the United Nations in New York during the General Assembly. And I think that Palestinians are very optimistic. So I hope that even with the sad situation in Gaza, the Israeli side is ready to go further. They now have more bilateral understanding ... so we could have this political cooperation in the Mediterranean region either through the Madrid approach or whatever we call it. We are good friends of both sides. Let us hope that they will be active by themselves and I also hope that the Americans will do what we expect them to do to push things forward.

Q: There are voices in the West currently calling for Iraq to be divided into separate Sunni, Shiite and Kurdish states. What is your opinion regarding this? What is your opinion about what is happening in Iraq?
A: So you know that Finland is not in Iraq. We are in Afghanistan with other EU countries. It's a very sad story. I hope that it has a happier continuation ... We have been with other UN member countries to support the building of a new democratic Iraq. But as you know very well, we Europeans do not know so well the background of Iraq. So I am very interested to also discuss with your leaders how they see the situation. I know about the pessimistic thinking about the future, not only in Iraq, but also in Afghanistan. And I hope that the countries in the region could help these countries to remain united... The situation of the Kurds, of course, concerns us, not only in Iraq but also in other countries. I think that the basic idea of this issue is that we should respect the human rights of every single citizen in all countries. That could also be an area to work together. But as I said I hope to come back to this issue in Jeddah.

Q: Lebanon is a hot spot in the Middle East. Last year when you chaired the EU during the Israeli invasion, you helped as much as you could to solve this issue. What do you currently see the future of Lebanon, especially since we have elections coming?
A: We did what has always been expected from the international community. We tried to organize help immediately when it was needed. As a country of the EU presidency, Finland had quite an important role. Whatever will happen in the future, we can say at least we could stop the violence. And that is a good base for further steps. The others and I have concerns because it was expected that the presidential elections would not go without difficulties. Let's hope they will find a good consensus to go further. I am not a fortuneteller. I do not know the future, but I will be in your country when the Parliament will be gathering again (to discuss)... the subject of the presidency. It will be very, very sad if they can't agree because the country needs a president, the country needs a government and a Parliament, and a national consensus.

Q: In your opinion, what are the conditions needed to make the upcoming peace conference next month a success instead of just another conference between the Arabs and the Israelis?
A: I think that both sides know very well the basic elements: the recognition of two sovereign countries and also respect for each other. We also know there are several other issues, which have been negotiated already several times. I think what we also need is basic trust between the partners. And that is why...we should reroute peace from the bottom to the top. That is why I consider it is very important, for instance, that the different kinds of NGOs have been active, or that UNICEF has also created discussions between Israeli and Palestinian women. The prime minister of New Zealand and I have been (involved) in these efforts.

Q: How do you evaluate Finland's activity in building trust between the Israelis and the Palestinians despite the fact that your country is far away from the Middle East? Also how do you evaluate your country's participation in UN peacekeeping forces around the world?
A: Of course Finland, as other Nordic countries, wants to be a good active member of the United Nations and we are happy to have such a kind of reputation. Finland is active in involving itself in development and also in peacekeeping and that is why we have tried to do our best concerning the Lebanon crisis. Now we are leaving Lebanon quite soon according to the timetable and we hope that others will fulfill their duties. I do hope that the development in that way will be positive... I think also development is very important because even peacekeepers are necessary...I am happy also that Saudi Arabia has been more active now than earlier because I think it is important for our African and also for our Middle Eastern friends to see that it is not only the EU which is interested all of the time.

Q: The Iranian nuclear issue is another burden to the already existing problems in the Middle East region. Several countries, including France, as a member of the EU, have asked for more economic sanctions against Iran. What are your views on resolving the issue?
A: I would say that I understand that people are already nervous about the whole process... Of course, that is the reason why peaceful sanctions are discussed. I respect very much Mr. Baradei. I hope that his work will be fulfilled...We have been encouraged to give Mr. Baradei enough time and trust to give him the confidence that the system can go on. But I do hope also that Iran does not misuse this timetable... I think they should understand that we are very worried about the whole process. I hope that both sides will (respect) the UN system and respect Baradei and a peaceful and balanced solution. We understand the need for energy, but we don't accept of course nuclear power for military purposes.

By Raid Qusti

© Arab News 2007