Vanhanen arrives in Russia on Wednesday at Putin's invitation.
"Special attention is to be paid to the problem of energy cooperation, first of all the construction of the Nord Stream gas pipeline, and ensuring the participation of Russian companies in the development of the nuclear power sector in Finland," the source said.
He said bilateral relations were developing rapidly. "Russia has become Finland's main foreign trade partner. The most promising directions of bilateral interaction include production cooperation, high technology, including nanotechnologies, and the establishment of research parks," the source said.
The bilateral ties also include railroad cooperation. "In particular, by 2010 arrangements will be made for a high-speed passenger rail link between St. Petersburg and Helsinki. The journey time will be less than 3 1/2 hours," the source said.
The Nord Stream pipeline, which will pump gas from Siberia to Europe under the Baltic Sea, bypassing East European transit countries, is being built jointly by Gazprom, Germany's E.ON and BASF, and Dutch gas transportation firm Gasunie at an estimated cost of $12 billion.
