The Molotov cocktail has been the DIY weapon of choice for decades. But it’s history is complicated. For a bit over 100 years, from 1809 to 1917, the nation of Finland had been a territory of Russia. Before the takeover by Russia, it had been part of the Kingdom of Sweden for 700 years. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that when Soviet leader Josef Stalin began making territorial demands of the Finns in 1939, they would be in no mood to allow even part of their country to come under foreign control again.
Stalin, who saw the threat of Nazi Germany growing month by month, was determined that he would annex as much territory on the USSR’s western borders as possible, as a buffer-zone against the Nazis should they decide to invade his country. Additionally, tensions between the Finns and the Soviets were strained ever since Finland gained independence from Russia following the communist takeover of that country in 1917. The Soviets sponsored communist Finns to agitate in Finland, and volunteer Finnish forces fought against the Soviets in East Karelia, a Soviet territory just over the border with Finland. Ethnic Finns there began a doomed uprising in the hopes of joining their territory to Finland itself. All of this combined resulted in Josef Stalin demanding that Finland give up certain of its Baltic Sea ports and fortresses and agree to move a significant part of its border westward, away from the important Soviet city of Leningrad (now St. Petersburg), as well as other territories to the north. #viral #ancient #facts #history #youtubeshorts #america #historyfacts #trending #trendingshorts #ww2
