Kiel - Vaasa:
the twin-city partnership
Kiel
wished to extend the scope of the twin-city partnerships it already had in Western
Europe into Scandinavia, and especially to Finland. To this end, in 1996, the
Land Capital had discussions with the Association of German Towns and Cities
and with the Finnish Trade Mission. Initial contacts were established with Vaasa.
While many cities from the former GDR already had twin communities in Finland,
the Federal Republic of Germany still needed to catch up. By means of its twin-city
partnership with Vaasa, Kiel opened the door to Finland, and by doing so strengthened
the official relations between the Federal Republic of Germany and Scandinavia.
The twin-city partnership between Vaasa and Kiel was formalised on 10 September
1967, "Twin Cities Day”. It was the precursor for the co-operative partnership
which had in the meantime been initiated between the Province of Vaasa and the
Land Schleswig-Holstein.
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