Customer Reviews

Cold Will: The Defense of Finland

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Very detailed study of the Finnish Armed Forces by a leading Finnish Defence Analyst. It's an interesting read, well-written but intended more for the serious Analyst and student rather than as an entertaining read. 5 stars for the depth of content and the serious contemplation of the subject. But don't expect something you can skim through of an evening - there's some pretty thorough analysis and serious thinking in here. A bit dated in places now as it's 20 years old, but good historical material.

Part I goes from the birth of Finland's Armed Forces in the 1918 War of Independence through to the Winter and Continuation Wars against the Soviet Union in 1939-40 and 1941-44.

Part II covers the post WW2 period up to 1988, providing a detailed analysis of the role and strength of the Finnish Defence Forces.

The author, Dr. Tomas Ries is currently Director of the Swedish Institute of International Affairs (since 1 January 2005). His main interest is the globalising security environment. Between 1997-2004 he was Senior Researcher at the National Defence College in Finland, focusing on globalisation and security, Finland's security policy and EU and NATO affairs. Between 1992-1997 he was Director of the International Training Course in Geneva, Switzerland and Deputy Director of the Geneva Centre for Security Policy. Between 1986-1992 he worked as Researcher and then Senior Researcher at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs and the Institute for Defence Studies in Oslo, Norway. His focus then was Soviet military interests in the north and nordic security and defence policies. Dr. Ries has written two books and over one-hundred articles and research studies. He holds a B.Sc. (Econ) from the London School of Economics and Political Science and a Ph.D. from the Graduate Institute of International Studies at Geneva University. Ries is a citizen of both Finland and the USA.