O 011221Z SEP 09
FM AMEMBASSY HELSINKI
TO SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 5157
INFO EU MEMBER STATES COLLECTIVE PRIORITY
USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY
UNCLAS HELSINKI 000329
FOR COUNSELOR CHERYL MILLS
EUR/ERA FOR EMILY WILLIAMS
EEB/TPP/MTAA/ABT FOR GARY CLEMENT
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: EAGR EAID EI ETRD FI
SUBJECT: FOOD SECURITY: FINLAND COMMITTED TO INCREASING
CONTRIBUTIONS IN PRINCIPLE
REF: STATE 89970
(SBU) Post delivered the demarche as requested in reftel to
Director Pertti Anttinen in the MFA Department for
Development Policy and to Director General Veli-Pekka Talvela
in the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. Talvela, while
reinforcing Finland's commitment to food security, deferred
to the MFA which controls the development budget. Anttinen
reacted positively to a nonpaper containing points from
reftel, which he had already passed to his Director General.
While the ministry was still in the process of making exact
budget calculations in the aftermath of the previous week's
budget talks among the governing coalition parties, Anttinen
stated that Finland is committed to increasing its share of
financing for food security in line with its broad goal of
increasing funding of development assistance in multilateral
and bilateral programs. The ministry was still in the
process of calculating exact budgetary allocations for 2010
and beyond, so he could not promise an exact amount at this
time. Anttinen concluded by noting that he expected food
security to be discussed during U.S.-EU talks next week in
Brussels as part of Finland's Transatlantic Development
Partnership initiative.
ORECK