
Minister of Foreign Affairs Jan Lipavský visited Finland
03.06.2022 / 15:41 | Aktualizováno: 21.03.2024 / 09:01
On 2 June 2022, Czech Minister of Foreign Affairs Jan Lipavský visited Helsinki, where he met with his Finnish counterpart Pekka Haavisto and Minister for European Affairs Tytti Tuppurainen. Minister Lipavský confirmed Czechia’s full support for Finland's accession to NATO. The ministers discussed the latest developments in Ukraine and unanimously condemned Russia's aggression. Minister Lipavský presented the Czech priorities for the EU Presidency to the Finnish partners.
The ministers discussed EU affairs, Russian aggression against Ukraine, energy security and the Western Balkans. Ministers Lipavský and Haavisto condemned Russia's aggression. "Czechia, like Finland, has experience of Russian oppression. That is why we want to support Ukraine very strongly. We agreed with Minister Haavisto to continue our political, military and humanitarian support to Ukraine," Minister Lipavský said at a joint press conference. Minister Haavisto thanked Czechia for its support for Ukraine and for accepting Ukrainian refugees.
Finland's intention to join the NATO was also one of the topics of the meeting. Minister Lipavský confirmed full support for Finland's accession to NATO, including the Czechia's readiness to sign the Accession Protocols. "Russia has achieved the exact opposite of what it wanted. Countries in its neighbourhood want to join NATO and the EU and some are abandoning their traditional neutrality," Lipavský said.
The upcoming Czech EU Presidency was also an important point of the meeting. Minister Lipavský presented the priorities of the Czech Presidency to the Finnish ministers that fully supported them. One of the most important priorities will be support for Ukraine, both in terms of reconstruction of war-damaged infrastructure and the prospects for the country's EU membership.
At the end of the meeting, Minister Lipavský expressed interest in deepening bilateral relations between Finland and Czechia.