Frag Out! Magazine
Issue link: https://fragout.uberflip.com/i/1488818
Analyzing this event and its ramifications, one should take history into the account. Both Sweden and Finland as well have been neutral after WWII. However, the nature of their neutrality did differ a bit. Finland was attacked by the Soviet Union on November 30th, 1939. The conflict, lasting until March 1940, dubbed Winter War, also known as the First Soviet-Finnish War, ended up in some territorial gains for the Soviet Union. However, the Finns inflicted serious losses on the Red Army. As a result of that war, Finland established an alliance with Germany. The Finnish military took part in an invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941. In 1944 a ceasefire was signed between Finland and the Soviet Union. The Finnish soldiers began operations targeting the former ally. Contrary to Central Eastern European states, Finland has not been taken in its entirety by the Red Army, and the communists did not come into power there. Democracy and capitalism prevailed, but this came at a price of some setbacks in the shaping of foreign policy. The phenomenon got the name "Finlandization". In the military dimension, the above translated into the procurement of both Soviet (main battle tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, AK license), as well as Western- made military equipment, with many capabilities also being developed within that scope. The Finnish Armed Forces were not a part of the Warsaw Pact. Should a war break out, their only task was to defend the territory of Finland. Sweden found itself in a slightly different set of circumstances. During WWII Sweden remained uninvolved, but consented to some arrangements, with agreements concluded both with the Germans, as well as the Allies. The Swedish soldiers also volunteered to support Finland, during the Winter War. Sweden was not being forced to establish any relations, and also had a major, untouched economic potential at hand. The declared neutral stance, and Stockholm positioning itself outside of any military alliance, NATO, in particular, were not tantamount to a complete lack of military cooperation. Given the geographical setting in which Sweden found itself, a Soviet invasion in the event of WWIII breaking out was quite a tangible risk, especially given the fact that yielding control over the Swedish territory would translate into an ability to have complete control over the Baltic straits, and would make it easier to take over Norway. It was assumed (as a certainty) that defensive One of the memes associated with the war in Ukraine offers a sarcastic take on Putin's policy, depicting him as the 2022 NATO salesman of the year. It is an accurate take on the less-than-expected circumstances - Sweden and Finland expressing their willingness to join the North- Atlantic Treaty Organization. As the present article is being written - in mid-August - the accession formalities are still underway. One should assume that they would be successful, as key decisions have already been made. ANALYSIS