Finland and Western Europe: Effectively at War

In Finland, an interesting discussion has emerged about our current relationship with Russia. MEP and General Pekka Toveri (National Coalition Party) claimed that Finland and other Western European countries are already effectively at war with Vladimir Putin's dictatorship.

He did not, of course, mean a war fought with firearms, but rather that Russia is directing all kinds of aggressive actions against Finland and other Western countries. According to Toveri, "Russia is extensively planning, preparing, and executing sabotage across Europe. For example, weapons depots have been blown up, assassinations carried out, cables cut, and there is ongoing information warfare and cyberattacks. Additionally, the West is threatened with nuclear weapons, the refugee weapon is used, GPS interference is conducted, and so on."

This was picked up by MP Pinja Perholehto (Social Democratic Party), who either pretended not to understand—or worse yet—genuinely did not grasp the matter. She therefore asked on social media, "If we are indeed at war, why don't the President and the Council of State declare a state of emergency under the Emergency Powers Act and enable authorities to act accordingly?"

In the ensuing discussion, Toveri stated that "Russia specifically aims to operate below the threshold of the Emergency Powers Act, making it as difficult as possible to counter their actions," and thus advised, "do not think of war in the old-fashioned way as only kinetic troop warfare. The Russians do not think so either."

Perholehto's comment demonstrated that Putin's Russia has achieved some level of success in its actions. Despite the fact that most of the public understands his actions and intentions, there is complete incomprehension—or at least a desire to score political points from the threat to our country—on the left side of the political spectrum.

Previous thoughts on the same topic:
The most effective Russian agent in the UK

Putin's useful idiots in Finland
Finnish general praised the Ukrainian air strike