Member-only story
Why Finland Didn’t Need NATO For 75 Years
And why they feel like they need them now
In early 2022, in the wake of Russia’s shocking invasion of neighboring Ukraine, Finland applied to become a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). This broke a long tradition of Finland being an independent military power in Europe. Since the end of World War II, Finland has hosted a large and independent military aimed at deterring Russian aggression. For decades, they didn’t need help from Brussels or Washington.
Finland has had a very contentious past with neighboring Russia. Finland fought two bloody wars in the modern era against Russia. The First Soviet-Finnish War was waged between 1939 and 1940. The Second Soviet-Finnish War was fought from 1941 until 1944. In both cases, Finland held its own against larger armies and heavier firepower.
After years of warfare, Finland decided enough was enough. If Russia wanted to tangle with its smaller neighbor, they were going to pay for it. Dearly.
Since 1945, Finland embarked on a militarization campaign that saw it become one of the most militarized nations on Earth, and the efforts were done entirely to deter future Russian aggression.
