HELSINKI, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- Finnish Foreign Minister Timo Soini called on Wednesday for speedy decisions to open a railroad from the Arctic Sea to Finland.
The possible railroad would connect the Norwegian shore of the Arctic Sea with the Finnish railroad network. Soini made the remarks when addressing the Arctic Spirit Conference in Rovaniemi.
The feasibility of the railroad is currently being investigated by Finnish and Norwegian officials. Their first report is to be completed in February 2018.
Soini welcomed the support received from the Arctic Economic Council. "We need friends and backing for this project," Soini said.
The Arctic Economic Council does not represent countries, but businesses and economic organizations active in the Far North in various countries.
Besides the possible Arctic Railroad, Finland is also investigating the possibility of a railroad tunnel between the Finnish capital Helsinki and the Estonian capital Tallinn.
The tunnel would cross the some 80-kilometre-wide Gulf of Finland. Soini underlined the importance of a future rail connection from the Arctic Sea via the Helsinki-Tallinn tunnel to continental Europe.
Soini also extolled the newly opened rail connection from Kouvola, Finland via Russia and Kazakhstan to China. The route is serviced with container trains that travel from Finland to China in ten days. "These railroads and sea lanes have a future," he said.
The Arctic Spirit Conference in Rovaniemi is one of the events associated with the Finnish chairmanship of the Arctic Council. The main theme of the conference is how to bring the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to Arctic science, policy and economy.
Speaking at the conference hall, the minister also called for more commitments internationally to promote the sustainability of the Arctic. "Sustainable development is not just wishful thinking. It is a survival strategy for us all," Soini was quoted by Daily Finland as saying.
The minister urged all sectors -- public and private organizations, businesses, even private persons -- to give their concrete commitments to the implementation of the agenda, according to the online news service based in Rovaniemi.
The conference has participants from 20 countries. It is held from Monday to Friday.
