India, Finland exchange views on various issues including Afghanistan, Indo-Pacific, COP26

During the 11th round of Foreign Office Consultation between both the countries, India and Finland have enjoyed warm and friendly relations and wish to expand their diplomatic relations in the Nordic countries, according to a statement.

According to the statement, the Foreign Office Consultations provided an opportunity to discuss the entire gamut of bilateral relations, including further strengthening of partnership in diverse areas such as trade and investment, S&T, education, digitization, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, innovation, sustainable development, circular economy, and renewable energy.

Both India and Finland reviewed the progress made since the virtual summit was held on March 16 and also agreed to explore cooperation in new areas like vocational education, space, startups, health, and pharmaceuticals.

The two sides also discussed the COVID-19 situation and the vaccination drive in both countries.

The Indian side invited Finnish companies to contribute to the flagship initiatives like Make in India, Digital India, etc. There are more than 100 Finnish companies in India and 30 Indian companies in Finland that have made a significant contribution to each other's economies.

The Finnish side congratulated India on 75 years of India's independence and conveyed that they looked forward to participating in the various events being organized to commemorate the occasion.

Both sides exchanged views on wide-ranging issues such as Afghanistan, Indo-Pacific, India-EU Partnership, cooperation in the Arctic and Antarctic regions, and COP-26. Further, India and Finland decided to enhance cooperation during their terms at the United Nations.

India was led by Reenat Sandhu, Secretary (West) in the Ministry of External Affairs, and the Finnish delegation was led by Matti Anttonen, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Reenat Sandhu also paid a courtesy call on Pekka Havisto, Foreign Minister of Finland, and discussed bilateral relations and exchanged views on regional and global issues. (ANI)