Statement of intent concerning a lease extension for the Saimaa Canal signed

Ministry of Transport and Communications
Publication date 26.9.2008 14.58
News item

Finnish Minister of Transport Anu Vehviläinen and Russian Transport Minister Igor Levitin discussed the preliminary lease agreement for the Saimaa Canal in Helsinki, with specific regard to current traffic issues. The Ministers negotiated, among others, development of border traffic between the two countries, a high-speed rail link between Helsinki and St Petersburg and maritime safety on the Gulf of Finland.

During the ministerial meeting, the two countries' Authorised Delegates for the Saimaa Canal, Deputy Minister of Transport Sergei Aristov and Permanent Secretary to the Ministry of Transport and Communications Harri Pursiainen, signed a statement of intent concerning a lease extension for the Saimaa Canal.