Finnish PM expresses concern at treatment of Russian opposition

No solution to wood tariff problem during Vanhanen's visit to Moscow

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Finnish Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen (Centre) has expressed concern about the recent treatment of opposition demonstrators in Russia. Vanhanen told Finnish journalists during his visit to Moscow on Tuesday that he had discussed the matter with his host, Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov.
      Russian police used force to put down anti-government demonstrations during the weekend, arresting dozens of people. The European Union and the United States also criticised the harsh measures against the protestors.
      During their discussions, Vanhanen and Zubkov failed to reach agreement on the issue of Russian tariffs on timber exports to Finland, and on the massive queues of lorries waiting to cross the border from Finland into Russia.
     
At a joint press conference of the two prime ministers, Zubkov at first said that he does not need to answer questions on the events of the weekend, because they were not the topic of the meeting.
      However, he later said "Did you watch television, how demonstrations in Tbilisi were broken up. And how did the European Union and the United States react? Not in any way."
      Zubkov was referring to demonstrations by opposition forces opposed to Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili in early November , which were put down violently by local police.
      The actions of the Georgian leaders were, in fact, sharply criticised by NATO, and the EU, both of whose membership Georgia is seeking.
     
Zubkov defended the actions of the authorities in connection with the weekend's protests.
      "Certain persons tried to provoke the police, but they failed. And they will never succeed, because the overall situation in Russia is very stable. The elections will be peaceful", Zubkov said.
      The demonstrations in Moscow and St. Petersburg were suppressed after the organisers, the Union of Right Forces party and the opposition group, The Other Russia, were not content with the designated locations for their demonstrations, and took to the streets in Moscow, and Palace Square in St. Petersburg.
     
Vanhanen said that the use of such force to put down the demonstrations was a cause for concern, even though the demonstrations went beyond their assigned location.
      Police arrested dozens of people, and some were still being held on Wednesday. Chess master Garri Kasparov, one of the leaders of The Other Russia, was sentenced to five days in jail.
     
No solution was reached on the Russian export tariffs on wood, or on the backlogs of lorries on the Finnish side of the border with Russia.
      Discussions on the tariffs imposed by Russia on the export of raw timber are to continue between Russia and the European Commission in early December.
      Vanhanen says that the proposal put forward by Russia to the Commission has "some of the right characteristics, but it is not yet ready".
      Zubkov said that a solution could be reached more quickly, if Russia were a member of the World Trade Organisation.
      Vanhanen proposed holding a summit focusing on issues concerning the forest industry, noting that such meetings have been organised before.
      Proposed solutions for the lorry queue problem include cooperation among officials of the two countries, and electronic customs clearance.
      Vanhanen sees the lorry queues as a "positive problem", noting that it reflects economic growth.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  EU links Russian WTO membership with wood tariff issue (11.6.2007)
  Väyrynen makes proposals to Russia on wood export tariff issue (23.11.2007)
  Commissioner says negotiations on Russian wood tariffs remain open (29.10.2007)

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