By the beginning of the March 1940 the Finnish leadership knew that the end was near. Both frontline troops and logistics were on the brink of a collapse. Standing alone against the Soviet giant was impossible without reinforcements and supplies from abroad. The massed assaults by tanks and infantry were preceded by artillery barrages on the scale of the WW1 western front that simply turned all defensive positions into gravel. A memorial service that was held on May 1940 for the 26 000 fallen Finns The Soviet demands for a peace treaty were staggering. Finland was expected to hand over the homes of 400 000 of its citizens, including the second largest city Viipuri. The new border would also be much more difficult to defend in the future and the USSR would get a naval base in Hanko at the South Western coast. The western allies kept promising help through Norway and Sweden, but both nations refused to allow troops to transit. While Finland used the Western sup...
News and analysis from security and warfare related topics with the focus mostly on Russia and Scandinavia. Occasional de-tours to the current hot spots around the world can be expected. -Petri Mäkelä