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That's "vsjo nashe bljat" - that's number one,
and number two - don't forget that Finns were considered the "second sort of Europeans" for quite some time, that's why no one from the "first sort of Europeans" was in a rush to save them.
The people of "dubious origin" are usually left up to Russia to deal with, since Russians themselves are of "dubious origin" according to some, lol)))
Finland was never occupaid in WW2.
Winter War
"The Finnish Army first came to world attention in 1939 in the famous Winter War or Talvisota, when it faced an invasion by a Soviet Army of nearly one million men. The invasion had followed failed peace talks in 1939 when Stalin had demanded Finland cede key territory, bases and mines. Facing a massive Soviet army, the Finnish defender’s fought a heroic David vs. Goliath struggle for four months."
"During one of the harshest winter’s seen in the Arctic Circle for a hundred years, the brave and stoic defenders used the –30oC to –40oC temperatures to advantage as they first stopped and then destroyed attacking Soviet columns. "
"They skilfully used the lakes and heavily forested terrain of their homeland to channel their attackers vastly superior numbers. The Finns earned a reputation as fearless and skilled fighters. But promised Allied aid did not arrive in time to prevent defeat."
"A second Soviet offensive finally forced Finland to sue for peace. Still, as one Soviet general is reported to have said ‘we won nearly enough land to bury our dead’.
Here is history lesson and warphotos from Finland;
"The images record the war years from 1939 to 1945, spanning three conflicts the Finns recognize as the Winter War (against an invading Soviet Union), the Continuation War (striking against the Soviets alongside the Germans) and the Lapland War (against the Germans for control of Lapland). http://www.theatlantic.com/photo/201...war-ii/100519/
"The Finnish Army first came to world attention in 1939 in the famous Winter War or Talvisota, when it faced an invasion by a Soviet Army of nearly one million men. The invasion had followed failed peace talks in 1939 when Stalin had demanded Finland cede key territory, bases and mines. Facing a massive Soviet army, the Finnish defender’s fought a heroic David vs. Goliath struggle for four months."
"During one of the harshest winter’s seen in the Arctic Circle for a hundred years, the brave and stoic defenders used the –30oC to –40oC temperatures to advantage as they first stopped and then destroyed attacking Soviet columns. "
"They skilfully used the lakes and heavily forested terrain of their homeland to channel their attackers vastly superior numbers. The Finns earned a reputation as fearless and skilled fighters. But promised Allied aid did not arrive in time to prevent defeat."
"A second Soviet offensive finally forced Finland to sue for peace. Still, as one Soviet general is reported to have said ‘we won nearly enough land to bury our dead’.
Here is history lesson and warphotos from Finland;
"A Brief History of Finland in WWII"
Hobby
"The images record the war years from 1939 to 1945, spanning three conflicts the Finns recognize as the Winter War (against an invading Soviet Union), the Continuation War (striking against the Soviets alongside the Germans) and the Lapland War (against the Germans for control of Lapland)."
Finland in World War II - The Atlantic
Finland doesn't offer Russia anything that it strategically needs, an ice free port. Russia does have an ice free port on the Baltic in Kaliningrad but it's disconnected from the rest of the country and separated by a combination of a minimum of at least two other countries. If it desired to do so, Russia would have to go through one of the following routes to connect itself to Kaliningrad:
Estonia + Latvia +Lithuania
Latvia + Lithuania
Belarus + Lithuania
Belarus + Poland
Urkaine + Poland
Given that Belarus is the most politically aligned with Russia, the scenario that makes the most sense would include Belarus. That would leave Russia with the option to be aggressive with either Lithuania or Poland. Well, both of those countries are part of NATO and that's a problem. But, if push came to shove, Russia wold statistically have a better shot at Lithuania than Poland.
If a route to their ice free port went through Finland, I'd bet that the Finns would have plenty to worry about since they aren't part of NATO.
In the end, Russia had another option in Urkaine. Eastern Ukraine is already filled with expat Russians and Ukraine isn't in NATO. After all, there's a reason that the Russians wanted Crimea. I doubt that the Russians really want Western Ukraine since the have what they want. Alas, how long with Crimea satiate the Russians? If they do want to connect Kaliningrad, then I'd be more worried if I were Lithuania and Belarus.
During the era of modern ice-breakers, an ice-free port has lost its major significance, ice is just a nuisance, not impassable. Also Königsberg is not an ice free port.
Not everyone agrees with that statement. For the sake of argument, let's say that you are correct. In that case, do you think the ice would be of the same magnitude as it is in St. Petersburg?
I still maintain that Finland is less likely to be invaded by the Russians because it doesn't have what the Russians want and need: access to an ice free port. On a side note, I understand that there are ice breakers. In fact, one of my friends is a captain of an ice breaker that works the route between Helsinki & Tallinn.
Not everyone agrees with that statement. For the sake of argument, let's say that you are correct. In that case, do you think the ice would be of the same magnitude as it is in St. Petersburg?
No, as the Saint Petersburg area is the first which freezes up in winter. Königsberg is behind the Curonian Spit, so it will ice up quite easily.
"The Finnish Army first came to world attention in 1939 in the famous Winter War or Talvisota, when it faced an invasion by a Soviet Army of nearly one million men. The invasion had followed failed peace talks in 1939 when Stalin had demanded Finland cede key territory, bases and mines. Facing a massive Soviet army, the Finnish defender’s fought a heroic David vs. Goliath struggle for four months."
"During one of the harshest winter’s seen in the Arctic Circle for a hundred years, the brave and stoic defenders used the –30oC to –40oC temperatures to advantage as they first stopped and then destroyed attacking Soviet columns. "
"They skilfully used the lakes and heavily forested terrain of their homeland to channel their attackers vastly superior numbers. The Finns earned a reputation as fearless and skilled fighters. But promised Allied aid did not arrive in time to prevent defeat."
"A second Soviet offensive finally forced Finland to sue for peace. Still, as one Soviet general is reported to have said ‘we won nearly enough land to bury our dead’.
Here is history lesson and warphotos from Finland;
"The images record the war years from 1939 to 1945, spanning three conflicts the Finns recognize as the Winter War (against an invading Soviet Union), the Continuation War (striking against the Soviets alongside the Germans) and the Lapland War (against the Germans for control of Lapland). Finland in World War II - The Atlantic
And this is relevant to my post... how exactly may I ask?
Things have been a bit awkward the past year what with frequent air space invasions and whatnot but I seriously doubt there's anything to be worried about.
There has been so many space violations by Russia that I wonder about their navigation equipment.
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