I am pleased to announce that the President of the Republic of Finland, Her Excellency Ms Tarja Halonen, will visit Australia from 13 to 17 February 2007. During this time she will visit Canberra, Sydney and Uluru.
Australia and Finland enjoy a warm friendship based on our shared outlook on a range of international issues and strong community links. Our bilateral trading relationship has expanded considerably in recent years, led by strong growth in Australian merchandise exports to Finland.
President Halonen will be accompanied by a delegation of senior Finnish scientists and officials who will participate in high-level roundtable discussions on innovation with their Australian counterparts. I trust that these discussions will identify areas for closer cooperation between our two countries in the fields of science and technology.
Finland has a strong tradition of peacekeeping and has made a positive contribution to international and regional security efforts. President Halonen's visit comes shortly after the conclusion of Finland's successful European Union presidency, during which time the EU worked closely with global partners on important questions of energy security. I look forward to discussing these and other issues with President Halonen.