​On 5 October, the Grand Committee received Prime Minister Sanna Marin's (Social Democratic Parliamentary Group) reports on the meeting of the European Political Community (October 6) and the informal meeting of the European Council meeting (October 7), both of which will take place in Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic holding the EU Presidency.

At the informal meeting of the European Council, the heads of state or government will discuss Ukraine, the energy situation, and economic issues. No decisions are made at the informal meeting and the topics will be revisited at the regular meeting of the European Council on 20-21 October.

The Grand Committee and the prime minister discussed supporting Ukraine by accelerating arms exports, for example. Based on the known details of the eighth sanctions package that was just approved, strengthening of sanctions against Russia were also discussed as well as the importance of the activities of third countries for their effectiveness.

There was also a discussion about ways to influence energy supply and price formation, the importance of economic policy coordination for European economic development, and visa policy in member countries and at the EU level.

The European Political Community, a political coordination platform for the countries of the European continent, will hold its first meeting in Prague. The programme includes thematic round table discussions in small groups, the topics of which are security and stability as well as economy, energy and climate. In addition to the EU countries, Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Iceland, Kosovo, Liechtenstein, Moldova, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, Switzerland, Türkiye, Ukraine and the United Kingdom have been invited to the meeting.

The Grand Committee and the prime minister discussed, for example, the initiative's background, purpose and relationship to other forms of cooperation, such as the Eastern Partnership. Prime Minister Marin said that Finland emphasizes the promotion of close cooperation between the EU and partner countries but stressed that the initiative should produce concrete added value. Finland considers it important that the cooperation makes full use of the potential of existing EU instruments, such as the enlargement policy.

Read more about the meetings in Prague on the website of the Czech EU Presidency.​​