(Translation)

SPEECH BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF FINLAND MARTTI AHTISAARI AT A DINNER HOSTED BY THE SENATE OF HAMBURG ON 25.9.1998

A Finn feels very much at home in Hamburg. My earliest personal memories of your city date from 1960, when I visited here.

Finland and Hamburg are bound by centuries-old ties in the fields of culture and science and especially business. As early as the Middle Ages, Hamburg became a powerful Hanseatic gateway to the North Sea and the world. In 1550 King Gustavus Vasa of Sweden founded the seaport that would later become our capital, Helsinki, to serve as an instrument of his trade policy in opposition to the Hanseatic League. Gustavus wanted to build a port on the northern shore of the Gulf of Finland to capture a share of the lucrative trade that Hamburg and Lübeck were then plying with Russia through Tallinn.

The Hanseatic League passed into history long ago, but the importance of Hamburg and its port to us Finns has not diminished; on the contrary, Finland is today the third-biggest customer of Hamburg, which is Europe’s second-biggest port. Both being port cities, Helsinki and Hamburg are competitors on one level, but at base they are more cooperation partners. King Gustavus Vasa would be pleased if he knew how well his vision of Helsinki as a transit port in East-West traffic had been realised. Today, a large part of Russia’s foreign trade flows through Finnish ports.

A further fact highlighting the quite special importance of Hamburg to Finland is that our country opened a legation here in 1918, in the early months of our existence as an independent state. Today, the presence of the Finnish Consulate-General is very visible to everyone in Hamburg. The golden lions along the roof of the building in which it is housed see to that.

Our Consulate-General in Hamburg has become an important part of our network of diplomatic missions since the Finnish Embassy was transferred to Berlin.

As I mentioned in my address to the Übersee-Club, the end of division in Europe offers enormous opportunities, especially in the Baltic Sea region. Here, however, I would also like to make a brief mention of our initiative concerning what we call the Northern Dimension of the EU. Our purpose in presenting this initiative was to bring about a consistent EU policy with respect to the northern regions of Europe. The aim of this policy would be to help link Russia into the world economy. In the light of recent events, that goal has become even more important than it already was. The Northern Dimension policy aims to promote eastward enlargement of the EU and to ensure that the goals of the Union’s strategic energy policy are achieved. It gave me pleasure to read that the programme for government worked out between the coalition partners states that Hamburg considers itself to be "part of the Baltic Sea region as defined by the EU". In the Baltic Sea policy outlined by the Senate, Hamburg is characterised as both the easternmost port of the North Sea and the westernmost of the Baltic. You, Mr. First Mayor, have outlined also other interesting aspects. I have noted with great satisfaction your lively interest in cultivating relations with the states fringing the Baltic. I applaud Hamburg’s determination to take an active part in revitalising the Baltic Sea region. Our shared goals are of first-rank importance for the future of Europe.

Finland and Germany are united by a natural partnership, which has gained in depth since Finland joined the European Union. Our cooperation within the Union is effective and close. Next year, Finland and Germany will have their turns in the EU Presidency and thus will together lead Europe into the new millennium. Finland will be the only Nordic country to adopt the euro at the beginning of next year. It is no coincidence that the only female member of the board of the European Central bank is from Finland. In 1906 Finnish women became the first in the world to achieve full political rights. Women’s share of leading positions in our society is impressive.

Germany has been Finland’s most important trade partner for many years. Hamburg and northern Germany’s share of this trade is greater than average. And Hamburg’s share will grow even further over the next few years when the Airbus aircraft that Finnair has ordered are assembled in Finkenwerder.

The Museum of Ethnology in Hamburg is currently presenting the Finnish exhibition "Bears and Log Cabins", which puts in perspective the importance of forests to us Finns. It is natural that forest products represent about 40 per cent of our exports to Germany. But to us forests also mean rest and recreation. One-tenth of our forests are in protected environments. Large numbers of people from Hamburg visit us each year to enjoy our country’s natural beauty and clean environment. High standards of environmental protection and sustainable forestry are maintained in Finland. That is a point we are particularly pleased to make in Hamburg, where environmental awareness has a very special status.

That is not to say that Finland is forests and nothing more. Our country is a leading world manufacturer of cellphones. We also hold a world record as users of these devices:

50 mobiles for every 100 people. In fact, Finland ranks second only to the United States where using information technology is concerned.

Hamburg-born Friedrich Pacius, an alumnus of the Johanneum, composed our national anthem. A curious feature indicative of the way in which the Baltic Sea region is growing together is that the same melody is also the national anthem of the Republic of Estonia, now again independent. Pacius, who worked as a kind of "state composer" in 19^th-century Finland, blazed the trail for the richly-diverse cultural exchanges in which Finland and Hamburg nowadays engage. Fortunately we have been able to reciprocate for Pacius’ contribution in the form of the singers, musicians and orchestras who often visit the Staatsoper in Hamburg and the city’s other concert halls. Names like Matti Salminen, Karita Mattila and Esa-Pekka Salonen are certainly familiar to many of you.

Mr. First Mayor, when your predecessor Mr. Voscherau visited Helsinki a year and a half ago, we had an interesting discussion of world events and the role in today’s Europe of the states around the Baltic. Since that conversation, the challenges facing us have probably increased even more, but so too have the opportunities that are there for us.

I thank you for your hospitality and this rewarding visit to your city. I propose a toast to your good health, in honour of the beautiful and lively Hanseatic city of Hamburg as well as to the success of Finnish-German cooperation and of our shared Europe.