Finland sees opportunities for mutual benefit with South Korea amid supply chain jitters

By Kang Yoon-seung

SEOUL, May 19 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and Finland have opportunities to pursue mutual benefits amid supply chain jitters caused by the Middle East crisis based on their "complementary interests," Finland's economic minister said Tuesday.

Finnish Economic Minister Sakari Puisto made the remarks during an interview with Yonhap News Agency during his three-day visit to South Korea, as he seeks to forge closer economic cooperation with Asian partners amid prolonged geopolitical tensions surrounding Iran and Ukraine.

"There are lots of complementary interests between Finland and Korea," Puisto said, noting the two countries share common ground in artificial intelligence (AI) and other advanced technologies.

Puisto pointed out that South Korea is "on the top of the world" in terms of spending on research and development in critical areas such as AI, adding that Finland is in "a similar type of position."

"We are investing heavily in R&D. We are a top country in critical enabling and breakthrough technologies in several areas," he pointed out.

Puisto particularly noted that Helsinki is seeking deeper ties with South Korea in the AI industry, citing Finland's strengths in "critical elements" of AI, such as networks for AI data centers.

"South Korea is investing heavily in AI," he said, noting the country is a middle power in the field alongside big players such as the United States and China.

"We have critical elements of AI, for instance AI-native networks. Nokia is becoming a key player in optical networks, which are critical components in AI data centers," the Finnish minister said. "We also have capabilities in physical AI in various fields."

Puisto noted that South Korean companies and people are "very tech savvy," adding that this is something Finnish people can relate to as they are also early adopters.

Touching on economic security, Puisto said Finland can help South Korea in the minerals sector, including supply chain management and information sharing.

"Finland is actually one of the strongholds in the minerals sector," he said. "We have mineral reserves, and we have significant exploration activity in Finland," he added, noting the two countries can pursue opportunities based on South Korea's processing capabilities.

On growing concerns around the world over the impact of AI technologies on the job market, Puisto said there should be adult education programs to help people adapt to the transition.

"I think one thing we certainly need to do is to sort of rethink the education system," the Finnish policymaker said, pointing out the need for lifelong learning to help people develop their skills and opening the possibility of cooperation with South Korea on the matter as well.

"We need to increase exchange of scholars, professors, students and startup companies," he said.

During his visit to South Korea, Puisto also met with officials from Hanwha Aerospace Co. on the previous day as part of Finland's efforts to strengthen cooperation with South Korea in the defense industry.

"We have one of the largest artillery systems in Europe, and Hanwha plays a major role, so we were discussing defense capabilities."

"Even before the invasion of Ukraine, we spent around 2 percent of GDP on defense, and now we are investing even more," the Finnish minister added, highlighting bilateral cooperation in the defense sector.