Finnish PM arrives in Beijing for 4-day visit to China

Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo arrived in Beijing on Sunday to pay an official visit to China from Jan. 25 to 28, at the invitation of Chinese Premier Li Qiang.

During the visit, Chinese President Xi Jinping will meet with the Finnish prime minister, while Chinese Premier Li and Chairman of China's National People's Congress Standing Committee Zhao Leji will hold talks and meet with Orpo, respectively, to conduct in-depth exchange of views on bilateral relations and issues of common concern.

Finland was among the first Western countries to recognize and establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China, and was the first European country to sign an inter-governmental trade agreement with China. Under the strategic guidance of the two heads of state in recent years, the future-oriented new-type cooperative partnership between the two countries has been deepened, and cooperation in various fields has been steadily advanced.

In 2025, bilateral trade between China and Finland exceeded 8 billion U.S. dollars in value, while mutual investment stock surpassed 23 billion U.S. dollars, reflecting sustained enthusiasm of enterprises from both sides for strengthening mutually beneficial cooperation.

During Orpo's visit, China's Ministry of Commerce will sign a memorandum of understanding with the Finnish side on strengthening the work of the China-Finland Committee for Innovative Business Cooperation, and enterprises from both sides will sign a number of business cooperation agreements, said a spokesperson for the ministry.

Orpo will be accompanied by executives from more than 20 Finnish companies spanning machinery, forestry, innovation, clean energy, food and other key sectors, according to the spokesperson.

China attaches great importance to the development of China-Finland relations, and stands ready to work with Finland to maintain close high-level exchanges, consolidate political mutual trust, strengthen economic and trade cooperation, promote people-to-people and cultural exchanges, foster mutual understanding and collaboration in multilateral affairs, and jointly elevate bilateral relations to a new height, said a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

China on Sunday handed over 17 Filipino sailors it rescued from a shipwreck near Huangyan Dao to the Philippines.

On Friday, a Singapore-registered cargo ship en route from the Philippines to China had lost contact near Huangyan Dao. Two of the 17 rescued sailors were confirmed dead. Four others remain missing.

At the request of the Philippine side, the China Coast Guard (CCG) at 14:43 Sunday successfully handed over the rescued personnel to the Philippine Coast Guard in the waters where the incident occurred.

Following the shipwreck, the CCG immediately dispatched vessels to carry out humanitarian rescue operations for the distressed crew and will continue to mobilize relevant forces for search and rescue efforts.