Finland can be called a winner in the narrow sense that it performed far better than expected against the Soviet Union in the Winter War. That achievement differed from its position in the wider Second World War, which ended in defeat against the Soviets. Alignment with Germany changed the strategic outcome even though Finland had been forced into an extremely constrained choice between larger powers. Battlefield performance and the final political result therefore point in different directions.
Notable Point · 54:55-55:12
Finland's battlefield success and strategic defeat against the Soviet Union
Finland's unexpectedly strong Winter War performance is separated from its eventual defeat after entering the wider war against the Soviet Union alongside Germany.