Finnish troops in snow uniforms take up position on the front line in the so-called Winter War of 1939/1940 and attack Russian positions. ©
In the Winter War, small Finland managed to successfully defend itself against the seemingly vastly superior Soviet Union. These parallels are likely to give Ukraine hope.
Helsinki/Cologne – In Finland, politics is first and foremost security policy. The country of five and a half million inhabitants is one of the most defensive states in Europe. There is a reason for this: Russia. Finland shares a border of more than 1,000 kilometres with its huge neighbouring country. And the past shows that the Soviet Union, which collapsed 30 years ago, did not shy away from crossing this border.
This is what happened in the Winter War of 1939/1940, when the Red Army invaded Finland because of alleged security concerns. Russia has been using a similar argument to wage the Ukraine war since February 24. "Finland has a long history of wars with Russia. Over time, Russia attacked Finland, which was still part of Sweden until 1808/1809, at least once a century," political scientist Minna Ålander of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs tells IPPEN's Münchner Merkur. MEDIA. And even though the Winter War ended in an armistice and Finland had to cede territories to the Soviet Union, "Finland managed to defend the most important thing: its sovereignty," Ålander tweeted on March 13 on the anniversary of the Winter War.
Ukraine war: comparison with Finland, which humiliated the then Soviet Union in the winter war of 1939/1940
Since the beginning of the Russian invasion, many comparisons have been circulating between Finland and Ukraine. This stands to reason, because in both cases it seems like a battle between David and Goliath. Contrary to all expectations, Moscow did not succeed in taking Ukraine, which was actually militarily inferior, within a few months. Instead, the Ukraine war is moving more and more towards a war of attrition with little to no movement on the front line.
For a possible way out, the view wanders into the history books. The Finns inflicted a severe defeat on the Red Army in the Winter War – and prevented it from being occupied by the neighbouring country. "We Finns have it in our DNA that Russia can pose an imperialist threat," Finnish MEP (EPP) Petri Sarvamaa told IPPEN's Münchner Merkur. MEDIA. So it's not surprising that Helsinki is pushing into NATO – even without Sweden if necessary. But how did little Finland manage to beat back the all-powerful Soviet Union – and then keep it in check for another ten weeks until an armistice? Elizabeth Braw, an expert in countering new threats to national security, has analyzed exactly this in an article for the US magazine Foreign Policy.
She says: "The commanders of the Red Army assumed that Tolvajärvi would be child's play, just as former Soviet leader Josef Stalin speculated that the entire invasion of Finland would be a walk in the park." Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin may have thought something similar about Ukraine at the beginning of the Russian invasion. Both were wrong. And so the strength of the Finnish army at that time in the fight against the Red Army resulted from the fact that Stalin was not prepared for such resistance. According to official figures, 70,000 Finns died in the Winter War, and the losses of the Soviet army are estimated to be several times higher. According to Brawn, the losses are five times higher.
Finland's defense against the Soviet Union: belief in herself and her country
The reason for Finland's ability to defend itself is the Finns themselves – and their belief in themselves and their country. In her analysis, Elizabeth Brawn quotes retired Major General Pekka Toveri, the former head of Finnish military intelligence: "The sacrifices made by the troops would not have been possible without the support of the home front. The soldiers knew how much they were valued by society, and they knew they were fighting for the continued existence of the country." In short, all of the country's resources have been used for defense. "This was the birth of Finland's policy of total defense, in which everyone has a role to play in protecting the country," Brawn writes. A unity that can also be observed in Ukraine.
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Further parallels: the Finnish warfare, which relied on small, fast ground troops, benefited from the territorial events of its homeland and proceeded tactically wisely. "Small Finnish groups approached our troops on skis from behind and cut off our supply routes," Brawn quotes the descriptions of a Soviet soldier. "By mid-December, our tanks were without fuel, the horses pulling the artillery were without oats, and the soldiers were without food." Numerous tanks were also destroyed by Finnish soldiers dressed in white on skis with Molotov cocktails. The Ukrainian army is taking a similar approach against Russia by means of targeted attacks and maneuverable ground troops.
The Soviet Union, on the other hand, tried to overrun its enemy through the sheer mass of bodies, which means nothing other than that the soldiers served as cannon fodder. Once again, a parallel to the Ukraine war, in which the often poorly trained and uncoordinated Russian personnel are being burned in droves. But, of course, there is a crucial difference. Finland was never part of the former Soviet Union, while Vladimir Putin sees himself legitimized by history to annex Ukraine. A quick end, as was once the case in the Winter War, is not in sight. For Putin, a victory over Ukraine is a historic mission.
