Finland's deep defence strategy: No new fortifications on the border

According to Finnish press reports, Finland, unlike the Baltic countries, does not plan to build military fortifications along its border. As local media suggest, the goal of defence in case of a Russian attack is not to stop them immediately but to conduct more profound defensive operations in the country.

Finnish broadcaster Yle presented the differences in defence planning among the countries on NATO's eastern flank. The article describes the Baltic Line, which involves plans to build fortifications along Lithuania's, Latvia's, and Estonia's eastern border. The latter plans to construct around 600 bunkers and anti-tank barriers, among other defences.

The article also notes the Tusk Line, which primarily focuses on strengthening Poland’s eastern border with Belarus. Col. Janne Mäkitalo, head of the so-called land combat school in the Finnish armed forces, commented that no defensive fortification could be overcome with appropriate artillery force and air-ground systems.

"Finnish thinking involves drawing the enemy deep into the country, enveloping them, and then delivering a knockout blow.,” explains military policy expert Col. Juhani Pihjajamaa.

In practice, this means creating a specific "defence depth," implying that there should be an area in the east where battles can be fought – emphasized in Yle's report.

The authorities of Lappeenranta, a city located 20 kilometres from the Russian border, trust the country's central defence doctrine. Evacuation plans have been updated there, and investments have been made in generators and emergency power systems, deployed in various parts of the city – revealed Ari-Pekka Meuronen, head of the city's security and crisis management department.

Experts also emphasize that Finland's land border with Russia is different from Estonia's, not only due to terrain conditions but also because it is several times longer. It extends over 1,300 kilometres, and fortifying it would require enormous expenditures. Permanent fortifications built during peacetime also require continuous maintenance.

However, some politicians are more enthusiastic about erecting new fortifications on the eastern border.

"Fortification strengthens security, raises the threshold for attack, and is worth considering, while not provoking anyone," wrote Finnish Ambassador to Washington Mikko Hautala, previously head of Finland’s mission in Moscow, in an article for the weekly "Kuvalehti."

Yle reminded that the Finnish armed forces have systematically been erecting various types of fortifications for years in different parts of the country, in key defense areas such as warehouses or military garrisons.

It is common practice to make agreements with landowners, under which, in exchange for financial compensation, the military can build bunkers and other fortifications or conduct maneuvers on private land.

The border area still has old fortifications from the so-called Salpa Line (e.g., stone blocks, anti-tank "dragon's teeth," bunkers, dugouts, and other types of defences) erected during World War II after the defeat in the Winter War against the Soviets. The fortifications were put in place from Lapland to the Gulf of Finland in case of another offensive threat, but the main barriers were built in the south, in the Saimaa Lake region. Many elements of this chain are still well-preserved, acknowledged Armi Oinonen, a researcher from the Salpa Line Museum.

During the Winter War of 1939-1940, the Red Army breached the so-called Mannerheim Line in southeastern Finland, a series of fortifications spanning about 130 kilometres and built during the late 1920s and early 1930s. As a result of the USSR attack, Finland lost about 10 percent of its territory, including part of Karelia.