Minister Häkkänen to visit Moscow

Minister of Justice Antti Häkkänen will visit Moscow on 1–2 October. He will meet with the Russian Minister of Justice Alexander Konovalov. The Ministers will discuss legal policy, the implementation of the cooperation programme between the Finnish and Russian Ministries of Justice in 2017–2018, and how the cooperation will be continued.

The Ministries of Justice of Finland and Russia have been engaged in bilateral cooperation already for 20 years. The cooperation programme encompasses development of the legal aid system, cooperation between the central authorities in civil matters and in the transfer of convicted offenders, and inter-authority collaboration in the fields of debt enforcement and criminal sanctions, among other things.

Minister Häkkänen will also visit the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation and meet the President of the Supreme Court Vyacheslav Lebedev. The theme of the meeting is the independence, impartiality and efficiency of the judiciary in the digital era.

Minister of Justice Häkkänen will meet Yury Chaika, Prosecutor General of Russia. Häkkänen and Chaika will discuss the functioning and operations of the prosecution services in Finland and Russia and certain topical issues in the field of criminal policy. They will also go through the implementation of the cooperation programme between the prosecution services and the cooperation in criminal matters between the countries.

Minister Häkkänen will also visit the State Duma Committee on State Building and Legislation and meet a representative of an association protecting the interests of European companies in Russia. In addition, Häkkänen will discuss the human rights situation with members of the Presidential Council for Civil Society and Human Rights.

Inquiries: Lauri Koskentausta, Special Adviser, tel. +358 2951 50131