Side by side

Finland and Russia compared

Two sourced records set beside each other — the figures each nation publishes, and the events each chronicle records of the other. Compared, never graded.

🇫🇮Finland

6 December 1917Finland declares independence from the Russian Empire

Dossier →Chronicle →

🇷🇺Russia

882Oleg takes Kiev and Kievan Rus' becomes a single state

Dossier →Chronicle →

Shared indicators
43
Domains
9
Crossed events
11
Data through
2026-08-10

The figures, side by side

Each figure is the same observation, with the same source, as on the two dossiers. Every value shows the year it was observed — vintages differ by indicator and nation. A “—” is an absence in the source data, never a zero. Metric names link to the world ranking; values open the figure on its own dossier.

Entangled histories

11 events in which either nation’s sourced chronicle names the other — including under earlier names of the same state. Each is the same record, with the same sources, as on its own chronicle; nothing here was written for this page.

  1. 1323

    Treaty of Noteborg

    The peace of Noteborg fixed an approximate frontier between the Swedish and Russian spheres in Karelia, assigning Finland to Sweden's orbit and splitting the Karelians between Catholic west and Orthodox east.

    Politics & Power · from the Finland chronicle · The Finnic Peoples and Six Centuries as Part of Sweden · Main outlines of Finnish history, Finland: Finland under Swedish rule

  2. 1808–1809

    The Finnish War and the end of Swedish rule

    Russia conquered Finland from Sweden in the war of 1808-09, ending some six centuries during which Finland had formed the eastern half of the Kingdom of Sweden.

    War & Rupture · from the Finland chronicle · The Finnic Peoples and Six Centuries as Part of Sweden · Finland: Finland under Swedish rule, History of Finland

  3. 1809

    Finland becomes an autonomous Grand Duchy

    By the Treaty of Fredrikshamn Sweden ceded Finland to Russia; it became the autonomous Grand Duchy of Finland, joined to the empire through the tsar, who reigned as Grand Duke, and kept its own laws and religion.

    Politics & Power · from the Finland chronicle · The Grand Duchy of Finland under the Russian Empire · History of Finland, History of Finland

  4. 6 Dec 1917

    Declaration of independence

    The Parliament of Finland approved a declaration of independence amid the turmoil of the Russian Revolution, ending more than a century as an autonomous Grand Duchy of the Russian Empire.

    Independence · from the Finland chronicle · Independence and the Finnish Civil War · History of Finland, Main outlines of Finnish history

  5. 31 Dec 1917

    Soviet Russia recognises Finland

    Lenin's Bolshevik government formally recognised Finnish independence on the last day of 1917, calculating that it could not retain the periphery of the former empire.

    Independence · from the Finland chronicle · Independence and the Finnish Civil War · History of Finland, History of Finland

  6. 30 Nov 1939

    The Winter War begins

    The Soviet Union invaded Finland on 30 November 1939 after Finland refused to cede territory near Leningrad; the outnumbered Finns mounted a celebrated defence through the winter of 1939-40.

    War & Rupture · from the Finland chronicle · The Winter War, the Continuation War and the Loss of Karelia · Russo-Finnish War (Winter War), History of Finland

  7. 1941–1944

    The Continuation War

    Allied with Germany after its 1941 invasion of the USSR, Finland fought the Continuation War to recover Karelia, but a Soviet offensive in 1944 forced it to seek an armistice.

    War & Rupture · from the Finland chronicle · The Winter War, the Continuation War and the Loss of Karelia · Finland during World War II, Russo-Finnish War (Winter War)

  8. 19 Sep 1944

    Moscow Armistice and cession of Petsamo

    The Moscow Armistice ended the Continuation War, restoring the 1940 border, returning Petsamo to the Soviet Union, leasing Porkkala as a naval base, and imposing reparations.

    War & Rupture · from the Finland chronicle · The Winter War, the Continuation War and the Loss of Karelia · Finland during World War II, Draft Peace Treaty with Finland (Paris Peace Treaty terms)

  9. 1948

    Treaty with the Soviet Union and neutrality

    A 1948 treaty of friendship with the Soviet Union framed Finland's Cold War policy of strict neutrality and non-alignment, later known as 'Finlandization', under which it preserved its democracy and independence.

    Politics & Power · from the Finland chronicle · Neutrality, the European Union and NATO · History of Finland, History of Finland

  10. May 2022

    Finland applies to join NATO

    Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 reversed Finnish opinion on military alignment; together with Sweden, Finland applied to join NATO, abandoning its long-standing non-alignment.

    Politics & Power · from the Finland chronicle · Neutrality, the European Union and NATO · Finland joins NATO as 31st Ally, History of Finland

  11. 4 Apr 2023

    Finland becomes NATO's 31st member

    Finland deposited its instrument of accession and joined NATO as its 31st member on 4 April 2023, ending generations of neutrality and more than doubling the Alliance's land border with Russia.

    Politics & Power · from the Finland chronicle · Neutrality, the European Union and NATO · Finland joins NATO as 31st Ally