Russia to become Finland's main trade partner

Russia is likely to become Finland's main trading partner within the next decade, Paavo Lipponen, speaker of parliament, said Monday before meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. "Relations between Russia and Finland are developing very well and they have positive prospects," Lipponen said before a meeting with Putin at the Kremlin. "Therefore, today we consider ... that within the next 10 years Russia will become Finland's main trading partner. It's quite possible," the former prime minister said, according to a Russian translation of his comments. For his part, Putin said bilateral ties between the neighbours are developing well. "I hope our parliaments will make the appropriate contribution to developing the relationship between our two countries," Putin added.