Finland swears in new coalition government

Finnish President Sauli Niinisto officially appointed the new coalition government led by Center Party chair Juha Sipila here Friday.

Sipila's cabinet members were sworn in and convened their first plenary session on Friday morning.

The new ruling coalition is composed of Finland's three biggest parties,the Center Party, the Finns Party and the National Coalition Party, which occupy a total of 120 seats in Finland's 200-seat parliament.

The new cabinet has 14 members, three less than that of the previous government. Among them six are from the Center Party, four from the Finns Party, and another four from the National Coalition Party.

In its government program, the new cabinet plans to make big spending budget cuts to balance public finances while promoting economic growth and employment through investing in infrastructure and other measures.

Regarding foreign and security policies, Finland will maintain good relations with Russia. Meanwhile, the country will retain the possibility of applying for NATO membership.

The outgoing six-party coalition cabinet led by National Coalition Party chair Alexander Stubb resigned earlier on Friday.