Patrushev: Finnish troops destroyed Slavs in Karelia in World War II

After the occupation of Karelia in the Great Patriotic War, the Finnish military pursued a racist policy and destroyed primarily the Slavs. This statement was made by Nikolai Patrushev, Assistant to the President of the Russian Federation, Chairman of the Maritime Board, in an interview with the National Defense magazine published on March 13.

This day marks the 85th anniversary of the end of the Soviet-Finnish war.

He pointed out that the Finns actually turned the Soviet region into a concentration camp at that time.

"Finnish troops occupied Soviet Karelia for almost three years, turning it into one large concentration camp, indiscriminately destroying, first of all, the Slavic population. There is an extensive historical and legal base on the crimes of the Finnish fascists, proving that Finland pursued a racist policy of dividing the local population according to the national principle," he said.

From the autumn of 1941 to June 1944, two thirds of the most economically developed part of Karelia was under the occupation of Finland, which was an ally of Nazi Germany. The goal of the Finns was, among other things, to build a "Great Finland."

In the interview, Patrushev also noted that Finland is turning into a springboard for potential aggression against Russia, as it was in 1939, but now under the auspices of NATO.

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Earlier, on March 4, Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen said that the worst outcome for the country would be if the United States lifted sanctions and began cooperating with Russia. She also added that Finland's defense plans currently rely on the capabilities of the allies.