FINLAND: MY THOUGHTS AS I DEPART POST

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 HELSINKI 001113

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM EAID SOCI FI EU
SUBJECT: FINLAND: MY THOUGHTS AS I DEPART POST


1. (SBU) Summary: Finland's 2006 second-term EU
Presidency offers the opportunity to strengthen trans-
Atlantic ties and advance key U.S. interests. The U.S.
and Finland share a broad agenda, including promoting
democracy, crisis management and peacekeeping,
trafficking-in-persons, and security cooperation. The
creation of an American Chamber of Commerce (with more
than 50 founding members) will improve prospects for U.S.
firms operating in the region. Finland's participation
in ePINE and interest in Ukraine allows us to coordinate
anti-corruption and good governance initiatives.
However, declining student and academic trans-Atlantic
exchanges are exacerbating negative perceptions of the
U.S. among younger Finns and threaten long-term U.S.
interests in the region. It is imperative that the U.S.
reverse this trend through expansion of established
exchange programs and creation of new and innovative
means to encourage mutual understanding and counter
negative images of the U.S. End Summary.


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LOOKING BACK
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2. (SBU) The past 18 months have been a time of
extraordinary cooperation with Finland. From the
expansion of Finland's contributions in Afghanistan; to
the unanticipated success of the Aceh Accords; to the
creation of an American Chamber of Commerce-- we have
actively and successfully pursued key USG goals.
Moreover, as we approach Finland's second-term 2006 EU
Presidency, there are myriad opportunities for enhanced
partnership in the near future. It has been a great
honor and privilege to serve my country as Ambassador to
Finland. I am deeply indebted to the excellent team--
Finns and Americans-- that constitutes Embassy Helsinki.
I would like to especially recognize my two DCMs, Rob
Weisberg and Amy Hyatt, who provided me with outstanding
support, particularly during this year's heavy rotation
when approximately three-fourths of our American
personnel (and most senior officers) turned over within
45 days. With the Embassy's exceptional staff and Amy's
capable and competent leadership, I know I'm leaving U.S.
interests in Finland in good hands.


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LOOKING AHEAD
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3. (SBU) Over the short-term, Finland offers us a key
venue for strengthening the wider trans-Atlantic
relationship and for advancing U.S. interests not only
here, but continent-wide. On January 15, Finland will
hold a presidential election that will almost certainly
return Tarja Halonen to office. Halonen leads the left-
wing of Finland's largest left-wing party and in the past
has spoken out occasionally against U.S. policies. Prime
Minister Vanhanen shares some of Halonen's concerns, but
has been less outspoken and is a committed trans-
Atlanticist. However, their skepticism toward certain
U.S. policies has not translated into uncooperativeness,
and we have the opportunity to build on a firm foundation
of common interests. Halonen and the GoF have already
proven reliable pragmatic partners for most key items in
our broad, shared agenda (promoting democracy, crisis
management and peacekeeping, human rights, trafficking-in-
persons, and strengthening trans-Atlantic dialogue).


4. (SBU) With a Secretary-level bilateral meeting
already set for Nov. 1, we should seek to facilitate a
bilateral head-of-state meeting following Finland's
presidential election. A cabinet-level visit to Finland
in the first half of 2006 would afford the U.S. an
excellent opportunity to inform GoF preparations for the
second-term 2006 EU Presidency. Such high level contacts
will not only highlight the importance we place on
cooperating with Finland, but will provide us stronger
leverage with a partner well poised to help us advance
our interests within the EU. They will also allow us to
weigh in early with the GoF on potential problem areas
like the China arms embargo.


5. (SBU) As regards Finland's activities in the EU and
further afield, the next year also presents useful
opportunities. On both the governmental and non-
governmental level, Finland continues to participate
actively and effectively in international diplomacy,
crisis mediation, and peacekeeping. While Finland's
efforts in these areas have been solid, we must do more
to encourage the Finns to assume a leadership role,
especially with regard to Russia where Finland enjoys a
special understanding of Russian culture, politics, and
business relationships. During my time here, the GoF has
led in certain instances where it suited domestic
interests (Baltic reforms, TIP, and Turkish EU
accession),but generally prefers to play a behind-the-
scenes role and leave leadership to larger EU countries.
Finland's upcoming EU Presidency gives us a chance to
urge greater leadership from the GoF, and doing so almost
certainly serves our interests. Shifting public opinion
on NATO membership will be a long, arduous task, but we
should reach out to those Finns who view greater
participation in European security initiatives as a
stepping stone to NATO membership.


6. (SBU) Finally, non-governmental Finland's role should
not be ignored. Former President Ahtisaari's
international mediation efforts in Aceh,
Ethiopia/Eritrea, and elsewhere have met with great
success (he fell only a few votes short of winning the
Nobel Peace Prize),and the U.S. should do more to
encourage them. Ahtisaari is soon likely to be named UN
Special Envoy to KOSOVO, and other prominent Finns will
play leadership roles in Darfur and the Balkans. All
these offer additional, important opportunities for the
U.S. to advance its peace and democracy goals. I also
note that the Secretary's Tribute of Appreciation to
Ahtisaari generated enormous goodwill here, and encourage
the Department to consider greater use of this award in
similar situations in the future.


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Shared Values and Vision/Solid Partnership
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7. (SBU) The following sections highlight some of our
more significant recent accomplishments and identify
promising areas for future cooperation.

a) Intellectual Property Rights: Responding to our
pressure (closely coordinated with industry leaders),the
Parliament of Finland is expected to pass an Amendment to
the Medicine Act that will prevent the placement of
patent-infringing products on Finnish mandatory generic
substitution lists. This breakthrough, a victory for the
principal of intellectual property protection, levels the
playing field for U.S. pharmaceutical companies and is
likely to lead to long-awaited changes in other European
countries. Rich, European nations must be held to the
highest standards of pharmaceutical market access, lest
the cost of developing new medicines be borne solely by
the United States.

b) American Chamber of Commerce: I have been particularly
attentive to the climate for U.S. businesses in Finland.
One key achievement during my tenure has been the
creation of an American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham).
When I arrived in Finland, the country was the last EU
member without an AmCham. Now, the AmCham is up and
running with 50 founding members (at 5000 Euros each),
two full-time staff, and an aggressive calendar of
events. The Amcham will dramatically improve the
prospects for U.S. companies operating in Finland and the
EU. Another key achievement was the regional conference
on REACH that the Embassy organized in June 2005. The
Embassy conceived and organized this conference as a way
to capitalize on Finland's role as the new seat of the EU
Chemicals Agency, with the goal of mitigating the
potential damage caused by this far-reaching piece of
legislation.

c) ePINE: ePINE has proved to be an effective policy
coordinating mechanism. U.S.-Finnish cooperation during
the Belarussian and Ukraine elections is one tangible
result. There are ample opportunities for additional
progress in the near future. The GoF has indicated that
Ukraine is its top "neighborhood" priority; a group of 20
potential investors accompanied the Prime Minister in
October to Kiev, underscoring the importance Finland
places on Ukrainian growth and stability. Finland hopes
to use ePINE to coordinate anti-corruption and good
governance initiatives in Ukraine with the U.S. and to
avoid program duplication with the "Northern Dimension"
and other multilateral processes. Without timely
progress on corruption, the GoF is concerned Ukraine
could "backslide."

d) Trafficking-in-Persons: There has been a sea change
in Finland's view of and approach toward trafficking-in-
persons (TIP). Over the past 18 months, the GoF has
formed an inter-agency task force, hosted two
international conferences, made TIP a separate criminal
offense, and in September approved a new victim-centered
national action plan. We augmented these actions through
TIP-focused IN and VOLVIS programs, and cooperation with
local NGOs. The Embassy also sponsored a series of
training seminars in Finland by Los Angeles-based police
captain and TIP expert Nick Senseley. We are well
positioned to build on this partnership. Finland will
need help implementing its action plan, particularly in
successful prosecution of traffickers and border
management. Professional exchanges, through VOLVIS
programs or other methods, will prove very effective.
The GoF also wishes to emphasize combating TIP during its
EU Presidency, providing additional opportunity to work
together toward shared goals.

e) Security Cooperation: We have continued to receive
remarkable support from Finland for U.S. security
interests around the world. The Defense Forces are
working to increase their troop strength in Afghanistan
to 100 personnel, and--responding to NATO's call--to
Shift completely their focus from civil-military
cooperation in the Kabul area, to support for the
Provincial Reconstruction Teams. Likewise, Finland
doubled its support for Iraqi police training in Jordan,
to 10 expert trainers. Finland maintains a contingent of
550 peacekeepers under NATO command in KOSOVO, and
another 200 under EU command in Bosnia. We are also glad
to report that Finland is steadily increasing its
investment in NATO compatibility, and will allocate
approximately 1 billion Euros in the next few years to
building a NATO-compatible defense communications system.

f) Environment: Viewed from the North (rather than the
traditional East-West axis),the U.S. and Russia are
indeed next door neighbors, whose economic security and
well-being are closely intertwined. In this context, we
have been engaging the Finns for many years on Arctic
issues. Finland continues to be an important Arctic
Council partner in addressing environmental hazards in
Russia. For example, Finland played a major role in
facilitating a waste water treatment plant in St.
Petersburg that will serve a community of more than
700,000. While much remains to be done, we have managed
to eliminate many land-based pollutants. We stand to gain
much from further cooperation with the Finns in areas
like bio-energy and nuclear waste storage. The Finns also
play a strategic role in the development of shipping
technology and infrastructure to guarantee the safe
transportation of Russian oil and gas (which comprise the
largest reserves outside the OPEC countries) through the
Baltic Sea and Arctic Ocean. The U.S. Arctic Research
Commission visited Finland in March with a view toward
enhanced cooperation on these issues.


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THE GREATEST CHALLENGE
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8. (SBU) Most of the superb cooperation between the U.S.
and Finland remains invisible to the average Finn. Few
Finns, for example, know that Finnish generals have twice
commanded NATO brigades in the Balkans, and only by our
initiative was there any press coverage when U.S. Marines
came to Finland for peace-keeping training. Meanwhile,
the international controversy over issues like Iraq and
global warming fills newspapers here. This imbalance in
information leads to an undue focus on areas of
controversy and disagreement, though few in fact exist,
and to a declining image of America in Finland.


9. (SBU) Finland's rich cultural life, however, offers
an area of high-interest public attention where we can
work to remind this country that our relationship extends
far beyond security or trade issues. For example,
Finland has a world-class music education system leading
to a public culture in which orchestra conductors and
opera singers are topics of front-page news - not gossip
- articles. Its musical festivals, from heavy-metal to
grand opera and everything in between, draw crowds of
Finns and tourists in the summer, and every American
performer who comes here, with Embassy support or
independently, brings a message of American culture and
society that reaches well beyond the normal circles in
which we work in Helsinki. During three interviews that
I gave last week to influential media sources, there was
tremendous interest in American arts and culture. A
senior Washington Post editor wrote recently that
"Helsinki seems to be the 21st Century answer to historic
Vienna." Our arts and culture can build bridges of
understanding and goodwill.


10. (SBU) With that in mind, I have focused much
attention on bringing fine American artists and
performers to Finland, and encouraging links among our
artistic communities. From young classical musicians
like the Julliard orchestra, to jazz greats like Wycliffe
Gordon, to the edgy art of Jeff Koons, this Embassy has
demonstrated to Finland the vitality of American culture
and the lively relationship that already exists between
our two nations' artistic communities. For example, the
Julliard orchestra premiered here a portion of a work it
had commissioned for its centennial from a Finnish
composer - who is himself a Julliard alumnus of half a
century ago and is today Finland's most celebrated living
composer. Separately, two young Finnish musicians who
had studied in the U.S. programmed a summer chamber music
festival including fourteen works by modern American
composers - an outstanding achievement for a full season,
let alone a one-week summer festival.


11. (SBU) If sustained, I am convinced that active
cultural diplomacy will bring new energy to Finnish-
American ties that retain a base of strength here.
However, as elsewhere in Europe we must recognize that
the post-WWII generation, or the legacy of those who
remember that period, has already weakened and will soon
be gone. As effective as cultural diplomacy can be, and
as active as our relationship with Finland may be in
everything from Afghanistan to waste-water treatment
technology, without direct, personal experience in the
other country, we face a high risk of cultural, social
and - ultimately - political estrangement. However,
young Finns still love and identify with many aspects of
American culture. Twenty years ago, one leading high-
school exchange organization sent 500 students/year to
the U.S.; this year it sent 71. The long-term impact of
this trend cannot be missed, or underestimated. The
perception of trans-Atlantic drift will become a self-
fulfilling prophecy if the trend toward fewer and fewer
Finnish (and by extension, European) students visiting
the U.S. and Americans visiting Finland is not stopped
and reversed.


12. (SBU) This may be the greatest challenge we face in
turning around negative perceptions of the U.S. I
believe the State Department must do everything it can --
through the Fulbright Program, multilateral exchange
programs, youth-peer exchanges, IV and VOLVIS programs,
as well as through creative public-private initiatives at
home and abroad -- to address the issue. The old ways
of thinking about academic exchanges must be changed. It
is no longer an ancillary or `value-added' component of
American diplomacy; it is a strategic tool.

MACK