HELSINKI: Praising his Chinese counterpart for his “stable and deep” thinking, Finnish President Sauli Niinisto said he was pleased to get the chance to discuss free trade and the Paris Climate Change Agreement with President Xi Jinping at their meeting.
“It is a short visit but we are doing our best to make our great visitor President Xi and his wife feel at home,” Niinisto said.
Xi started his visit to Finland on Tuesday, and is then set to leave for the United States where he will meet with US President Donald Trump.
Niinisto said in the interview in Helsinki’s presidential palace that he expects the two nations’ bilateral relationship to be elevated to a new level.
Four years ago, during his visit to China, Niinisto said he agreed with President Xi that there would be a new kind of strategic partnership between the countries. “What we have seen in concrete terms is a lot of development in business but also in our political contacts,” said Niinisto as he looked back on his first meeting with China’s president after Xi became head of state in 2012.
Niinisto said he has a sound personal relationship with Xi following several meetings over the years at various events.
He said it is important for leaders to have contact with each other at a time when the world faces a range of problems.
Niinisto said he appreciated the points Xi raised in Davos earlier this year and especially his attitude toward free trade. He said Xi’s opinions are very similar to those of the European Union and Finland, which are both keen supporters of free trade.
And Niinisto emphasized the importance of maintaining the Paris Climate Change Agreement, another area in which China and the EU share similar views.
“The innovation in clean-tech is quite important because this is essential when urbanization is still booming China.” He said Chinese companies want to invest in Finland and are especially interested in renewable energy.
