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Finland is interested in partnering India in a number of areas, including education, clean technology and energy security, but the tax case involving Nokia, a Finnish company, may be a concern for investors, Sauli Niinistö, President of Finland, said here on Tuesday.
BusinessLine was invited to interview Niinistö just ahead of President Pranab Mukherjee’s state visit to the Nordic country this week. The two leaders are expected to sign 19 agreements. Niinisto sees the ‘Make in India’ campaign creating possibilities for Finnish companies in India. Edited excerpts from the interview.
Is the Nokia issue a setback for the India-Finland relationship?
It is a problem for Nokia. And (there are) other consequences … it is possible that investors are worried … it (raises a) question mark on taking risk. They might think it is a risk.
Would you like to communicate any concerns you have to the Indian Government with regard to the way the Nokia tax case has been handled?
I don’t want to send any message to the Indian Government but I would just like to point out that the one thing needed is clarity. You have to know the exact rules, and that the rules are stable. Vodafone has won one case last weekend, so that’s a positive.
Given that energy security is a key concern for both countries, are you open to cooperating on nuclear energy with India?
Well, I see no obstacle in that. But I don’t have anything concrete at this point. Tomorrow, there will be a cooperation arrangement signed between the Indian atomic regulator and the radiation and nuclear safety authority of Finland.
Finland has greater trade with China than with India. What are the hurdles preventing your country from having more trade with India?
Our cooperation with China has been quite active. But there is no obstacle to opening further trade with India, too.
In China, now we have 300 Finnish companies compared to 120 in India. But we all know the Nokia case and the Vodafone case.
Maybe that’s caused some thinking among investors, who may be careful not knowing what exactly has taken place.
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