President David Granger, today, accredited His Excellency Jukka Pietikäinen as non-resident Ambassador of Finland to Guyana and expressed the hope that his appointment will be a catalyst to enhancing relations between the two countries.
The accreditation ceremony was held at State House in the presence of Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Carl Greenidge and Director General in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Audrey Waddell.
According to GINA, the Head of State told the Ambassador that Guyana is confident that his appointment will also add impetus to exploring avenues for collaboration, particularly in the area of climate adaptation and mitigation and sustainable energy development.
He also spoke of Guyana’s ongoing efforts to establish a ‘green’ state, which emphasises protection of the environment, preservation of the country’s biodiversity, provision of eco-tourism and eco-educational services and the promotion of practical measures to ensure climate adaptation.
According to GINA, President Granger assured the Ambassador of his Government’s commitment to working closely with him in the discharge of his duties, noting that Guyana and Finland share common values such as mutual respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty, mutual non-interference in each other’s internal affairs, cooperation for mutual benefit, respect for treaties and international law and maintenance of peace of security.
Meanwhile, Ambassador Pietikäinen said that even though he will be based in Helsinki, he is determined to visit Guyana regularly to work on building a stronger, mutually beneficial relationship between the two countries. He noted too, that while Guyana and Finland are geographically distant from each other, the two countries have cooperated through CARICOM and through the Association of Caribbean States (ACS).
With regard to the country’s prospects in the oil and gas sector, the Ambassador also expressed Finland’s readiness to assist Guyana in translating its future economic wealth into sustainable growth and prosperity, GINA said.
Guyana and Finland established formal diplomatic ties on April 2, 1979 and the two countries have since enjoyed cordial relations.
