Speech by President of the Republic Tarja Halonen at the 60th anniversary celebration of the Finland-Russia Society on 16 October 2004

According to a well-known saying, the world is a village and the people living in it are different. For us to live in peace we must get to know one another and abide by common rules.

Friendship societies like the 60-year-old Finland-Russia Society spread information about other countries and cultures. Such bridgebuilders are always important.

They are especially important in this era of globalization. Faraway and often frightening events bombard us and our possibilities to control our own lives seem to be slipping from our grasp. For this reason it is imperative to create more effective networks of cooperation and trust.

Neighbouring countries are still a special case. Finland and Russia are different but they have a direct interface. This interface is much more than our 1,340-kilometre border. It is above all our intertwined history over the past thousand years. We know each other better than many others do, but we could know more and guess less.

The Finland-Russia Society has the challenging task of stimulating and maintaining young people's interest in our eastern neighbour. We Finns are stern and critical towards ourselves as well as others. But I would say that we are trustworthy partners when we do open up.

During the past decade dealings between our nations have expanded in every sphere of life. This positive development has also brought new challenges. Practical work has been successful because political relations between Finland and Russia are excellent. Our economic dealings have reached a very high level and continue to grow strongly.

Finland's membership of the European Union has opened new possibilities for bilateral cooperation and has also brought the whole EU family closer to Russia. Russians' rapidly increasing interest in Germany, France and many other EU countries is also a fact. Yet Finland does not want to be just a gateway, but a partner in its own right.

What can we do so that this interaction, mutual understanding and friendship between Finns and Russians can grow and flourish? Since both our national languages, Finnish and Swedish, are small languages, we have to learn at least one other language besides these. In practice English has assumed a dominant position, as it has in many other countries. To get the greatest benefit and to enjoy the richness of different cultures, we should not be content with this.

We should also find means to increase interest in Russian in schools and especially in adult education. There is a growing need for Russian and it also opens the door to a new culture from which we have received many influences over the centuries.

Cooperation between our universities, schools and other organizations should be strengthened and new ways should be found to deepen knowledge about one another particularly among young people. For a couple of years the Finnish National Fund for Research and Development conducted the Future Makers project, in which young Russians learned many things about Finnish society. This project is worth following up.

The goal of Finland's cooperation in neighbouring areas is to improve people's welfare. The Finland-Russia Society and its chapters have actively participated in projects focusing especially on children and young people, often in the social welfare and health sector.

The environment and conservation interest citizens in both countries. I am pleased that the Russian government has approved the Kyoto Protocol and I hope that its ratification will proceed rapidly in the Duma.

Two partnership agreements in the EU's Northern Dimension focus on the environment and welfare. The environmental partnership has got off to a good start and a key project involves work on the Southwest Wastewater Treatment Plant in St Petersburg, which began in March of last year. I believe that practical projects like this will strengthen people's confidence in the genuineness of cooperation.

The same experience on a personal level is gained by the millions of Russians and Finns who travel across our border. Last year there were six million border crossings. The state's task is to take care of formalities quickly and safely, but the atmosphere experienced by visitors depends on all of us.

The Finland-Russia Society's contribution in this work has been invaluable. I want to express my sincere thanks to the Finland-Russia Society for this friendship work and wish you courage and success in the future as well.