Outi Holopainen appointed Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Security Policy

The Government appointed a new Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Security Policy at its session on 1 June.

Under-Secretary of State, Foreign and Security Policy

The Government appointed Counsellor for Foreign Affairs Outi Holopainen to serve as Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Security Policy for a fixed term from 1 September 2023 to 31 August 2027. Holopainen will transfer to the post of Under-Secretary of State from Finland’s Embassy in Addis Ababa, where she has served as Head of Mission since 2020.

Holopainen served as Inspector-General of the Foreign Service from 2016 to 2020. Before that, she served as Ambassador in Lisbon from 2013 to 2016 and as Director of the Unit for Security Policy and Crisis Management from 2010 to 2013 and as Director of the Unit for Arms Control from 2007 to 2010. In the Diplomatic Service, she has also held posts in Stockholm and Bonn.

Holopainen joined the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1988. She holds a Master of Laws degree.

Outi Holopainen. Photo: Petri Krook

Inquiries

  • Kirsti Pohjankukka, Deputy Director General for Human Resources, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, tel. +358 29 535 0038, kirsti.pohjankukka@gov.fi