I wish to thank you, Mr. President, for the kind words that you have addressed to my country, my wife and me, and to my party.

When you made a state visit to Finland in September 1993, Mr. President, you became the first Italian head of state ever to do so.

Your visit strengthened the good relations between our countries. As you said in Helsinki at a banquet hosted by my predecessor President Koivisto: "There is nothing of more essential relevance in friendship between peoples than mutual understanding of culture, history and language. That creates real relations of friendship, emphasising every people's own characteristics, individuality and human riches."

Finland and Italy are of course united by the great ideals of European civilisation: democracy, tolerance and a belief in the rights and freedoms of the individual. I would like to add geography to that list. Both of our countries are also maritime states; Finland on the Baltic and Italy on the Mediterranean.

Since your visit, Finland became a fully-fledged member of the European Union at the beginning of 1995. It was a historic decision: we consistently chose cooperation and closer interaction with those countries with which we are united by democracy, culture and a desire to build a secure Europe.

To be able to make a state visit to Italy this year gives me particular pleasure. This country is a charter member of the European Communities and the founding treaty of the EC is kept here in Rome. There are plans for high-level celebrations here to mark the 40^th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome in March.

The Italian EU Presidency a year ago taught us Finns more about the extensive opportunities inherent in our cooperation in building Europe, in our shared endeavour. Italy laid the groundwork for the Union's Intergovernmental Conference. We were particularly appreciative of the democratic, attentive manner in which Italy conducted herself in the Presidency.

Italy has enjoyed strong economic progress in recent years. Democracy in this country has undergone downright upheavals. From time to time, indeed, you have faced manifestations of extremism that threaten democracy. We admire the manner in which you have successfully combated those phenomena without infringing human rights.

My own Finland is likewise in economic transition. One of our strengths is a high educational standard. High technology accounts for a proportion of our exports that is high in any international comparison. I know that Finnish technology products are respected here in Italy.

Since the end of the 1980s, Europe has been in a state of transition with respect to security policy. It has been possible to strengthen cooperation and achieve closer mutual dependence. On the other hand, new kinds of conflicts have arisen; let us remember especially the tragic events in former Yugoslavia. The starting point for our work has been the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe and the "Charter for a New Europe" signed in Paris in 1990. That is the road that we must continue to travel, and we must strengthen it.

The diagonal that runs through Europe from Finland to Italy unites us today rather than separating us. My wife and I were very pleased to accept your invitation to come to Rome, the capital of the world - caput mundi - along that European diagonal line.

I am also very pleased that tomorrow I shall have the opportunity to show you, Mr. President, our Villa Lante on the hill of Gianicolo. For nearly 43 years, Villa Lante has been Institutum Romanum Finlandiae. In its own field, it has added to knowledge of our common cultural heritage and helped create the real relations of friendship that you mentioned in Helsinki.

The architect Alvar Aalto is known in Italy. His works include the Finnish biennale pavilion in Venice and the Riola di Vergato Church in Bologna. In a interview with an Italian newspaper in 1954, he said: "I always have a trip to Italy in mind; it can be a trip that I have made in the past and that lives on in my memory, a trip that I am actually on, or else one that I am just planning. In any event, a trip like that is the sine qua non of my work as an architect."

I wish to propose a toast to your success, Mr. President, and to that of the entire Italian people.