Press release
16 May 2007
Ministry for Foreign Affairs
Establishment of a national committee for the bicentenary of Finland's separation from Sweden
The Government has decided to set up a national committee for the bicentenary of events in 1809. The committee will be headed by Minister for Foreign Affairs Carl Bildt.
In 2009 it will be two hundred years since Finland was separated from Sweden by the Peace Treaty of Fredrikshamn and became an autonomous Russian Grand Principality. The Kingdom of Sweden, which lost a third of its territory and a quarter of its population, at that time acquired in all essentials its present borders.
"There are many strong reasons to commemorate in various ways the significance of the important events of 1809 and what they came to mean for our two countries. History is where the future starts," says Minister for Foreign Affairs Carl Bildt.
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The year 1809 saw the end of a six hundred year long epoch, when the Kingdom of Sweden was composed of Swedish and Finnish provinces. This community has left deep traces in both countries' development.
The 1812 agreement between the Crown Prince of Sweden, Karl Johan, and Czar Alexander ushered in a new era of two centuries of continued close contact and mutual dependence between Sweden and Finland. This took on new forms, due to Finland's status, first as an autonomous Grand Principality and after 1917 as an independent state. During the past fifteen years in particular, since both Finland and Sweden joined the European Union, it has been possible to extend and deepen this cooperation.
Contact
Mikael DahlAmbassador
European Union department, Ministry for Foreign Affairs
+ 46 8 405 50 73 The Press service, Ministry for Foreign Affairs
+ 46 8 405 57 30
