Finland's Minister for Foreign Affairs Elina Valtonen (NCP) on Wednesday is meeting with her Ukrainian counterpart Andrii Sybiha, according to the Finnish foreign ministry.
The Ukrainian foreign minister is in Finland for Thursday's Helsinki+50 Conference, a meeting that will include marking the anniversary of Finland's chairing of the Conference of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
Finland currently chairs the security-oriented group of 57 states and other representatives. Last week, it was reported that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky would attend the meeting remotely. The conference will also include representatives from Russia and Belarus.
According to a foreign ministry press release, Valtonen and Sybiha are to discuss issues including Ukraine's peace efforts and Finland's role in assisting the war-torn country.
Valtonen and Sybiha will also talk about "Ukraine's Euro-Atlantic integration and Finland’s continued support for the country on its path to EU membership", the ministry said.
"Ukraine is fighting for its independence, and it has repeatedly demonstrated that it is willing and ready to achieve sustainable peace – unlike Russia, which, quite the contrary, is accelerating its attacks on civilian targets too. Ukraine deserves our firm support," Valtonen said in the release.
"At the same time, we encourage Ukraine to go on with the reforms necessitated by its EU path and to guarantee an independent and efficient functioning of its key institutions, such as anti-corruption agencies," her statement continued.
