On December 10, 2019, Vice Foreign Minister Ma Zhaoxu attended and addressed upon invitation the reception marking the independence day of Finland and the successful concluding of the 2019 China-Finland Year of Winter Sports held by Finnish Embassy in China. In his speech, Ma Zhaoxu congratulated Finland on its 102nd anniversary of its independence. He said, President Xi Jinping and President Sauli Niinisto launched together the 2019 China-Finland Year of Winter Sports at the beginning of this year. The year 2020 marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Finland, therefore bilateral relations will usher in new development opportunities. Both sides should well implement the important consensus of the two heads of state and the results achieved in their mutual visits, deepen China-Finland future-oriented new-type cooperative partnership, promote China-Europe cooperation on all fronts, jointly safeguard multilateralism, and cope with global challenges together, so as to make due contributions to world peace, stability and prosperity.