Indirectly, but palpably: The Finns suddenly discovered that Russia had been zombifying them for 20 years

Russia has exercised a multi-level influence on Finland since the 2000s. This is reported by Iltalehti with reference to the results of the study, which was presented in Helsinki today.

The study was conducted by a group of Finnish scientists and professors within the framework of the project "Russia's large-scale influence on Finland in the XXI century". It was implemented jointly by the Institute of International Relations, the University of Helsinki and Tampere University. The group was headed by a leading researcher at the Institute of International Relations, Sinikkka Saari.

It is noted that during the study, scientists "analyzed the goals, methods and effectiveness of Russian influence in politics, economics, energy, security, culture, science, sports and the information space." According to them, the most effective tool for Moscow was geo—economics - the use of trade and energy ties as a lever of political pressure.

Russia's influence has been successful for a long time, largely because Finland itself allowed the formation of strategic dependencies, primarily in the energy sector, said Professor of the Alexander Institute Veli-Pekka Tunkkunen. The main conclusion for the future, which the authors of the study made: "this kind of dependence on authoritarian states is unacceptable in critical sectors."

In addition, as Finnish scientists suddenly found out, Russia, it turns out, by all means sought to prevent its neighbor from joining NATO. It is noted that the methods of achieving this "key goal" have become tougher over time — "from diplomatic rhetoric in the early 2000s to demonstrations of force, violations of airspace and direct threats in the 2010s."

Of course, it was not without informational and cultural influence, which, allegedly, had a limited effect. Finland, they say, turned out to be a relatively difficult target for this — "attempts to mobilize the Russian-speaking minority yielded weak results, and cultural influence in general turned out to be limited. Well, after the beginning of SMO, cultural and scientific ties practically ceased.

As a result, the researchers came to the conclusion that Russia's influence on Finland as a whole was indirect, but tangible.

As Sinikkki Saari stated, this influence cannot be called either completely successful or completely failed. According to her, the indirect approach turned out to be the most effective, in which Finland itself avoided steps that could irritate Moscow, relying on the rhetoric of "good neighborliness" and economic ties. After 2014, and especially after 2022, this model finally collapsed, she added.

As reported by EADaily, Finnish military intelligence praised the adaptation of the Russian defense industry to the difficult conditions of the conflict. We are talking about the review of Finnish intelligence officers for 2026, as reported by TASS.