Finnish Parliament Speaker Calls Morocco ‘Very Important’ Partner for Finland, EU

Morocco is a “very important” partner for the EU, and therefore also for Finland as an EU member state, said Finnish Parliament Speaker Jussi Halla-aho during his meeting with Morocco’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates, Nasser Bourita. “Morocco has a key role in partnership with the EU in many important fields, including energy transition and tackling climate change, migration, countering terrorism, radicalization, and many other strategic areas,” the Finnish official further told the press, stressing that his country fully supports the strengthening of EU-Morocco relationship. Furthermore, Mr. Halla-aho voiced his satisfaction with how “excellent” Morocco-Finland relations are, revealing that the two countries “share many values and ambitions” in international arenas. “We are both staunch supporters of the international rules-based order.” He went on to commend Morocco’s recent reforms, adding that these actions testify of the Kingdom’s “consistent development trajectory and ambition.” According to the Finnish Parliament Speaker, his visit to Morocco reflects the Nordic country’s ambitions to deepen the “friendly relations” between the two countries. “I believe there is room to strengthen our bilateral relations in many fronts, especially in the economic domain.” In this respect, Mr. Halla-aho suggested existing Memoranda of Understanding in the areas of renewable energy and integrated water resources as a “good basis for increasing our collaboration,” further stressing that both countries would benefit from increased cooperation in the areas of digitalization, education and circular economy.