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Prime Minister Sipilä met President of the European Council Donald Tusk

Government Communications Department
Publication date 14.3.2018 14.44 | Published in English on 14.3.2018 at 17.33
Press release 127/2018

Prime Minister Juha Sipilä held talks with President of the European Council Donald Tusk in Helsinki on Wednesday 14 March. Prime Minister Sipilä highlighted a number of EU matters important to Finland, including Finland’s EU Presidency in 2019.

“This was an excellent opportunity to start the discussions and collaboration on Finland’s EU Presidency. Our Presidency will begin in exceptional circumstances, just after the parliamentary and European elections. The European Union will also have an agenda of some significance. That’s why we need to proceed with the preparations in good time,” said Prime Minister Sipilä after the meeting.

The discussions also focused on matters that are on the agenda of next week’s European Council, including Brexit, the further development of the single market, US steel tariffs, and trade policy more generally.

Regarding the EU negotiations on the United Kingdom’s departure from the Union, concrete views are expected from the UK. In the coming negotiations there will continue to be a need to ensure the unity of the EU.

Prime Minister Sipilä and President Tusk discussed at length the way forward for the EU’s Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), which will be one of the key issues for the EU in the coming months. The matter will also feature strongly at next week’s Euro Summit.

“The Economic and Monetary Union must be taken forward and Member States should quickly reach an understanding on the completion of the Banking Union. In my talks with President Tusk, I presented our position and the background to it in detail. Finland has taken a very pragmatic and constructive approach to the development of the EMU. We will continue to actively influence the process in order to find common solutions,” said Prime Minister Sipilä.

Inquiries: Kare Halonen, State Secretary for EU Affairs, tel. +358 295 160 319, Riikka Pakarinen, Special Adviser (EU Affairs), tel. +358 40 580 0833, and on media arrangements Anne Sjöholm, Head of Communications for EU Affairs, tel. +358 40 537 0733, Prime Minister’s Office