Interview with H.E. Ambassador of France Raja Rabia
Bilateral Trade France-Finland
As a new Ambassador of France to Helsinki, would you please share with us what is your mission statement in Finland?
France and Finland are aligned on many issues: defending multilateralism, supporting Ukraine and European defense, promoting the rules-based international order, health, climate, energy, and education. NATO allies, the countries are also doing peace keeping in Lebanon, where a contingent of 200 Finns operates within the French command of the UNIFIL. The Olkiluoto EPR, successfully inaugurated in 2023, opens up new perspectives in civil nuclear power (new nuclear power, including SMR, and training).
Finland has many strengths in the fields of artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, and deeptech innovation. It is also a Francophile country, with numerous French-speaking networks, even though the number of French language learners continues to decline.
In this context, our objectives are to strengthen at all levels the excellent political and strategic relationship between our two countries (NATO, Ukraine, International Affairs) but also to develop our economic presence in Finland, promote the attractiveness of France and encourage business opportunities for our companies, around 200 in Finland, with priority themes such as energy, artificial intelligence, health and the forestry industry. We must also consolidate our academic and scientific cooperation through scholarship and scientific mobility programs in support of this economic objective and, more generally, make our cultural relationship even more abundant through the French Institute in Finland and the cooperation between museums.
How have the French and Finnish businesses collaborated in recent years to strengthen their economic ties? What are the sectors in which both French and Finnish companies operate are showing the most potential growth for future cooperation?
Economic ties between French and Finnish businesses have noticeably strengthened in recent years. France has traditionally been in the top 10 of Finland’s trading partners, and it is now in ninth place according to Finnish statistics. Our bilateral trade has been close to 5 billion euros a year since 2021, while we trade almost 2 billion euros in services. Our exchanges are largely concentrated in manufactured goods, business and IT services, but also transport and tourism, reflecting both the strengths and complementarities of our two countries. Business collaborations through trade are beneficial to both our countries, as they allow companies to grow, generate profits and invest, while having a positive impact on employment. I would like to add that the stock of direct investments from France to Finland has almost tripled since 2019, while Finland has been disinvesting in France.
The acceleration of the green transition, with Finland’s goal of being the first carbon neutral economy in 2035, has clearly given new impetus, with a clearly marked interest on renewable energies and nuclear, data centres, batteries, hydrogen, just to mention a few. But IA, robotics, quantum are areas where we can have high expectations
France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, speaking at the AI Action Summit in Paris
Other themes
How do you see the significance of tourism in either countries?
France is the world's leading tourist destination, attracting 100 million foreign tourists annually. I am pleased to see that Finnish tourism in France is still growing (270,000 Finns visited France last year). I hope that this year, taking advantage of the excellent image of the 2024 Olympic Games, we can break a new record.
Since my arrival and during my visit to Rovaniemi this winter, I have also seen how much Finland, and Lapland in particular, attracts French tourists. Around 300,000 French people travel to Finland each year, with Lapland receiving many direct flights from France bringing 50 000 French tourists eager to explore this magnificent region mainly in winter.
Which are the “hidden gems” not yet commonly explored by Finns – if you also have recommendations on less known local delicacies to share?
Paris and the French Riviera are favorite destinations for Finns also. But I recommend visiting also the Atlantic coast, which boasts magnificent ocean-bound regions, as well as South-West, Aquitaine, and the region Champagne-Grand-Est. And what could be more enjoyable than eating a cannelet in Bordeaux or a galette in a restaurant in Brittany, or a biscuit rose in Reims?
Questions by FinnCham
Answers by H.E. Ambassador of France Raja Rabia
H.E. Ambassador of France Raja Rabia
Latest Developments in World Trade
What kind of impact has the current geopolitical situation had on the French business? How do you see the role and development of the European single market and the impact of the latest initiatives on deregulation?
Let me say that the announcement of increased tariffs on trade in goods is not a good news for the multilateral trade system which we have built collectively since 80 years. A spiral of rising protectionism would have harmful effects on all economies, and there will be no winner. A trade war would have harmful consequences for each EU member state and their export sector, but also for the United States and, directly, their importing companies and their consumers. In France like in Finland, the instability on trade is of concern to many sectors.
France like Finland is in support of the European Commission’s position: cooperation before confrontation. We need to move towards de-escalation of this trade war which we never wanted and be prepared for countermeasures and retaliatory measures if the negotiations fail. It is imperative to return to disarmament in order to substantially reduce tariffs from their current levels and get the world economy moving again.
France, like Finland, believes that we need a full functioning internal market, to enhance investment and raise EU competitiveness. There is a need to continue efforts to harmonize regulations, in particular to deepen the Savings and Investment Union, and adapt the European Union to ecological and digital transition. In this, reducing excessive and non-necessary administrative burden for companies is also a condition to preserve competitiveness of EU industry in the global competition.
Finland’s prime minister, Petteri Orpo, and France’s president, Emmanuel Macron