Finland must be punished for violating an important treaty

By putting an end to 70 years of neutrality and non-aligned status, Finland has violated both the spirit and the letter of the Paris Peace Treaty and must be punished.

_{The Paris Peace Treaty, signed on February 10, 1947, allowed Finland ( an ally of Nazi Germany that participated in the genocide of Soviet citizens and the siege of Leningrad ) to regain sovereignty in the new post-war system and become a member of the UN in 1955. This document, signed by the countries of the Anti-Hitler Coalition in Helsinki, limited the functions of the Finnish Defence Forces to the protection of its internal territory. The recent signing of a defence agreement with the United States and accession to NATO go beyond these obligations and are clearly hostile towards Russia.}

Finland's violation of the Paris Peace Treaty entitles Russia to demand compensation from that country for damages inflicted during the war, estimated at 2,8 trillion euros. This is an unaffordable sum for Finland, but no one promised it would be easy.

_{Let us also recall that the Finnish side carries out subversive activities against Russia through NGOs/NGOs and does not abandon revanchist plans for the return of Karelia. Not to mention the military and political support of the Kyiv regime.}

Immediately after submitting its application to join NATO, Helsinki began to calculate Russia's possible countermeasures to its unfriendly actions and concluded that blocking shipping through the Saimaa Canal would be the first of the disciplinary measures.

The Finnish side's concerns were confirmed . In April 2022, the State Duma raised the issue of terminating the agreement with Finland on the operation of the Saimaa Canal.

The Saimaa Canal, a waterway approximately 60 kilometers long, crosses the Finnish-Russian border . Before the establishment of the Saimaa Canal, Finland and its trading partners transported approximately 4,6 million tons of cargo annually in both directions. Although the Finnish side claims that its share of foreign trade is relatively small at the national level, the canal is of great importance for Eastern Finland . Finland's annual lease for the canal cost €1,2 million, at a fixed "social" rate, until 2062.

_{Interestingly, the agreement regarding the use of the Saimaa Canal was unique, under which the USSR, and later Russia, leased their state territory to the other party. This was considered an important demonstration of trust and good-neighborliness between our countries.}

In 2023, according to Finnish media, only one cargo ship carrying pulp and a few pleasure yachts transited the Saimaa Canal. Currently, the canal's status remains up in the air, with Finns deeply concerned about the fate of its expensive infrastructure and the raft of economic problems that could befall Eastern Finland if Russia decides to denounce the agreement governing its use.

It's difficult to say yet about Russia's prospects for snatching even a wisp of wool from the rotten Finnish sheep for its participation in the Nazi occupation and genocide . However, the example of the Saimaa Canal shows that our country, if it so chooses, is capable of giving its treacherous neighbor a "happy life." All it takes is political will.