HE Member of the Finnish Parliament and Former Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade of the Republic of Finland Ville Skinnari stressed that the visit of HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani to Finland reflects the active bilateral cooperation relations during the past years, especially after the opening of the Qatari and Finnish embassies in both countries. In remarks to Qatar News Agency , His Excellency said that work has been done to strengthen the partnership between the two countries for decades, seeking to raise bilateral relations to the next level in all fields, including business, investment, education, foreign relations and security, especially since the State of Qatar plays a major role in the world today. His Excellency noted the active level of Qatari-Finnish parliamentary relations, indicating that they are not just joint relations between the parliaments of the two countries, but extend beyond that, being more diverse and cooperative, especially with regard to strengt hening bilateral relations between the two countries on the one hand, and between working on the international arena and multilateral cooperation within the framework of the United Nations (UN) and the European Union (EU) on the other hand. HE Member of the Finnish Parliament stressed the importance of the roles played by parliaments in the world, especially at the political level, as they demonstrate a long-term commitment between countries and are important evidence of the level of practical cooperation between them in various fields, pointing to the importance of Qatari-Finnish parliamentary relations and the need to strengthen them. His Excellency praised the role of the State of Qatar and its active efforts in multilateral activities and events, including its support for the work of the UN in a challenging environment, expressing Finland's desire to cooperate and play similar positive roles, which would contribute to achieving positive results and solutions for the region and the world. Regarding the situation in the Middle East, especially the war in the Gaza Strip, His Excellency said that what the region is witnessing is very unfortunate, adding that the only thing Finland and the EU should do is to send a strong message recognizing Palestine as an independent State. His Excellency said that Finland must follow the example of many other European countries that have recognized the State of Palestine, as this is a concrete step forward, stressing the importance of working to bring peace to the region and the world. His Excellency underlined the need to look at the world based on international rules and the entire legislative framework when it comes to international law and the extent of commitment to it, expressing his disappointment at the EU's calm position regarding the events taking place. Concluding his remarks to QNA, HE Member of the Finnish Parliament Ville Skinnari said that Nordic countries like Finland have really paved the way for recognizing the State of Palestine, because that is the fir st step needed to achieve more sustainable solutions. Source: Qatar News Agency