Speaking Notes of Dr. Väyrynen, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland at the Lisbon Conference on Assistance to the CIS-Countries, May 23, 1992

Mr. Chairman,

I am very satisfied with the progress made since our first conference. We have excellent reports in front of us. I would like to join the positive comments given especially on the joint UNICEF/WHO report. The recommendations of all the reports should be implemented without any delay.

We seem to have a consensus on our future work. That is why I will make a few brief remarks only from a special Finnish point of view.

1) Finland has become a gateway for humanitarian assistance to Russia. We are ready to offer our services also in the future. Some written information on that is available during this conference.

2) Finland - because of her geografical location - can also be a platform for technical assistance to and longer term cooperation with Russia especially in the regions close to Finland. As an example I would like to mention the services our construction sector can offer to all of us.

3) Finland very warmly welcomes the initiative by the United States to improve nuclear safety in the former Soviet Union. There are several dangerous nuclear reactors in our immediate neighbourhood - I am especially referring to the Sosnovy Bor power plant. Finland and several other countries have already started cooperation with Russia to improve nuclear safety. That work has to be continued and intensified.

- On the other hand, we should take into account that the only safe solution in many cases is to close the plant. That is why we should look at nuclear safety in a
wider perspective: by improving the energy efficiency in Russia and other newly independent states, and by investing in new safe capacity we should aim at a
situation where most dangerous plants could be closed. That might sound unrealistic, but it is not, taking into account the immense waste of energy in those countries.
- Those investments are profitable when leading to conservation of energy,
- they improve the state of the environment and
- they give possibilities to a real solution for the nuclear safety.

Finland has started - as minister Kozyrev mentioned yesterday - energy cooperation with Russia on the basis of this comprehensive view. I hope you all could join us
in these efforts. Our own resources are limited.

Finally, Mr. Chairman, I would like to join those who have spoken about the grave situation in former Yugoslavia. At the same time I would like to remind us
all of the necessity to promote peaceful development within the newly independent states and between them. I am referring specially to Nagorno-Karabah, the conflict
between Armenia and Azerbaidzan, and the situation in Moldova. Peaceful circumstances are a precondition for the success of our common efforts. I also hope that an agreement of an early withdrawal of the former Soviet troops from the Baltic states can be reached as soon as possible. That is a necessary precondition for the
development of these three countries.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman