China, Finland building a bridge of science and hope
The four-day visit of Finnish President Alexander Stubb to China starting Monday offers great opportunities for Finland and a welcoming boost to bilateral scientific and trade ties for China. But perhaps most important, it signals China's continued efforts to build peaceful, constructive relations with the West at a time when international relations, especially between Russia and the United States over the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and between Iran and the United States over the Israel-Palestine conflict, have been hostile and dangerous.
The omens are propitious and the historical record encouraging for the Finnish president's visit, during which he held talks with Chinese leaders. China's Foreign Ministry said Finland was among the first Western countries to recognize the People's Republic of China back in 1950 and it confirmed that relations between the two countries "are experiencing sound development".
Finland, with a population of only 5.6 million but impressive natural resources for its size, seeks investment from the vast Chinese economy, which for a quarter century now has enjoyed by far the largest and fastest growing industrial base in the world. China has been Finland's largest trading partner in Asia for many years and the bilateral trade volume reached $8.2 billion in 2023.
