Finland voices support for Czech EU presidency

The visiting Finnish Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen on Tuesday expressed full support for the Czech Republic’s EU presidency, saying his country would back Prague’s efforts to deal with the global financial crisis. The statement comes shortly after French President Nicolas Sarkozy assured Prime Minister Topolánek that Paris would not try to sideline Prague by holding a parallel presidency for the eurozone states. The Czech and Finnish heads of government also discussed energy sources and security. Mr. Topolánek said Finland could become a model for the Czech Republic with its combination of renewable sources and atomic energy.