Mark Galeotti | Finland, Russian imperialism, NATO and the resilience of democracy

In this English language episode we had the pleasure of interviewing historian, writer and honorary professor of the UCL School of Slavonic and East European Studies, Mark Galeotti. In this episode, we discuss Russia’s imperialist ambitions, Finland’s relations and history with Russia, the resilience of liberal democracies, the Western discourse about Russia, and much more.
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[@G0ldfingers]

Interesting for us English speakers to hear the Finnish perspective as it is for Finnish to hear an English perspective.

[@sirrodneyffing1]

Europe could buy the 60billion of weapons from the US.

[@dereckbrannigan6195]

Hello Finland. Greetings from Downunder🇦🇺🌏🇦🇺

[@justincoleman2740]

Hello Finland! Wishing for you prosperity from Canada.

[@ronti2492]

What an excellent interview- and interviewer. So 'Finnish'= professional, quietly spoken, competent, well informed....not bombastic, self effacing: all about the topic and Galeotti and not the interviewer! Well done, really really excellent. Kiitos!

[@KA-jm2cz]

Puhuminen hopeaa Vaikeneminen kultaa Talk is silver Keeping silence is gold

[@ralphhebgen7067]

Very good. Questions were concise and to the point. The only point of frustration is that your English is better than that of most English native speakers. 😅

[@MaryEspinoza-cx9wg]

Sadly yes 😢

[@Mattjki]

Lol -native English speaker

[@sailor67duilio27]

Thank you Futucast, more of these, i would like to hear more Finnish opinions on European events.

[@pierresaelen3097]

@Futucast, I would suggest that you make a playlist of your English language videos. This would make it easier for all those who don't understand Finnish. Good interview. Kind regards from Flanders.

[@JezzBowden]

Agreed, given that less than 1/1000 people speak Finnish, there's obviously a huge market to tap in non-Finnish speakers

[@sateentuoksu]

And they did it. Hopefully the link will come through.... i post it separately, so that this message won't be deleted, if the link will

[@sateentuoksu]

Here: English episodes kzbin.info/aero/PLxQt1MdchURvB2wGO09qN85M0h9xz6FWX&si=wgBqiS7MohIDY9um

[@pierresaelen3097]

@@sateentuoksu Thank you for playing safe by using two posts. And it worked: the link isn't censored by the algorithm, which isn't always the case.

[@robertbradshaw2449]

Lp ❤❤11q😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊j2k9😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊k8i

[@blackbird5634]

The spirit of Simo Hayha watches over Finland today.😉

[@charlesbeaudry3263]

Fun fact: For the Swedes Viking is a verb, not a noun. It is what Swedes did when they went on their travels. They ended up crossing from the Baltic sea to the Black sea for commerce by travelling the Dinpro River, hence the origin of Kievan Russ. So Ukrainians have a more legitimate claim on Russian culture than Moscow.

[@TTFerdinand]

So it actually should be called "vikinging" - a high-risk, high-profit venture that many were called upon when their jarl decided to go.

[@tiitsaul9036]

Mark is such an intelligent communicator. Greetings from Estonia.

[@robertvanslooten9475]

Intelligent? Really? I prefer smart in a certain way.

[@ennediend2865]

Intelligent indeed 👍

[@peterlaurie1247]

Putin has seen an opportunity to take over Europe and has taken it. Making it sound like he just has a chip on his shoulder is misleading and dangerous.

[@EmmettHenderson-hf1zm]

Thank you ever so much. From Idaho, USA.

[@geofthompson3844]

Mark is one of the very best people to hear from. He doesn't talk nonsense for an audience of like minds, he just shares fact and reality. And real world experiences. And he respects us enough to give us credit that we'll understand what he's saying. Without worrying about us potentially having a meltdown because we might not like what we heard in some parts.

[@johnm7267]

You obviously don’t know the difference between speculation and facts

[@geofthompson3844]

@@johnm7267 you obviously don't know how to read properly. My comment was clearly about his whole life and how he operates when talking about things on any given subject

[@666xurxo]

He does talk nonsense for an audience of like minds. That´s why he uses the term "Revolution of Dignity" to refer to the Maidan coup, which BTW was supported by the USA (something he fails to mention), and he paints it as an "democratic" exercise (perpetraed by Nazis?)

[@christinelapping7903]

And if you follow his podcast, In Moscow's Shadows, he is comfortable admitting what he doesn't know. Which makes a change from all those who claim to be totally prescient.

[@geofthompson3844]

@christinelapping7903 yeah exactly 💯. He's not claiming to be anything he's not. He just shares what he does know, gives his views, and shares his opinions. And, as new information is learnt he adapts what he say to incorporate the new data. That's why I respect him.

[@jovitapopovaite2092]

Very informative interview ❤ greetings from Lithuania 🇱🇹 regarding the refugees: we just pushed them back and the flow reduced to barelly few people a month trying to cross the boarder. Just stand your ground 🇫🇮

[@danglingondivineladders3994]

I love bringing this up to Trump supporters who assume that putin opposes illegal immigration. If those guys only knew...but they are adverse to foreign politics unfortunately and think everything is caused by American politics. But yeah Finland shut down a large border in three days I think.

[@user-fm4hd3zw3q]

I’m an Aussie but still have Polish citizenship so proudly a NATO citizen. Welcome Finland. I’m glad you joined. And that’s the whole point, we all joined. NATO didn’t go East. We ran West. I remember in 1989 when the first partially free elections took place in Poland. We were safe in Australia by then for a long time but the first thing I asked my father: “when are we joining NATO, when are we joining the EC?” It was pre Maastricht after all. And these were common conversations amongst the 100 million people in Eastern Europe. It’s not an accident all the former eastern bloc countries joined.

[@robertvanslooten9475]

Pride is not a good quality.

[@GeneralWinter9]

Pride comes before the fall polyak

[@kyyyni]

"Finally" was the word in my mind when Finland joined Nato. We could have joined already in the 1990s, but it took Russia's full-scale invasion on Ukraine to turn the popular opinion of Finns to (overwhelmingly) support joining Nato.

[@robertvanslooten9475]

@@kyyyni Maybe Finland and Sweden made a miscalculation to join NATO. Sweden in particular, because of its neutrality during 200 years. Why should it change a winning game? Being member of NATO is o.k. as long as it doesn't mean a threat for a country, among others Russia. It's terrifying that American military bases are now being built in those countries. That is a threat for Russia and in consequence for peace in the world.

[@user-fm4hd3zw3q]

Just to clarify, proud in this context is not meant as bluster. It simply reflects that the countries that joined NATO, did so willingly and for good historical reasons. And also that I reject the pejorative narrative some have of NATO. 😊 Collective security does not pose an objective threat to any country with thousands of nuclear weapons. It does limit that nuclear armed country’s ability to coerce the smaller countries. All the best to you all.

[@tonyblitz1]

I really appreciate the English episodes, which I can listen to while at work. I First found the channel via your Dylan Burns interview. Very sharp questions and good dialogue, I think it's especially promising that you found a prior statement of your guest and asked him to clarify or iterate on it. I'll have to sit down and catch up on the subbed episodes at some point. Keep up the fantastic work!

[@marions7423]

kiev is start of russia ? really. and rom is start of romania. it is not russia but medieval rus. start of russia is moscow marshes and serving horde to repress other rus principalities on the horde behalf

[@marions7423]

i am sur stalin genocided a lot of finns before ww2 given his policy of sending to gulag any diaspora nationalitis being it korean geek or finn. no woneder finn might pay back to those people especially serving in nkvd .also there are a lot of finnish speaking minorities in northern russia who ar culturaly gnocided probably. no schools no books etc. i heard there is no single belorus language shool in belorus whta is it if not cultural genocide.

[@marions7423]

putin is doing that his grinding war with hundred thousands dead men as result , often most patriotic and ukrainian speaking is not genocidal?

[@marions7423]

he says nobody cared about donbass. i am not sure what ukaine could do different. they evacuated population near front lines unlike russians. did not bomb larg cities unlike russian with mariupol and payed pensions to populations under russian control which is bordering with treason to pay for russian occupation with ukrainian money

[@julianjdogg]

Lol is Dylan famous? I met him in Kharkov last May at a restaurant 😂

[@Whistlewalk]

That was a very interesting discussion. Thanks!

[@pietpiraat1353]

Dear Futucastcrew, could you please make a playlist of all the English spoken episodes on your channel? It would make the reach of your channel a lot bigger. Thank you for this fine episode and kind regards from the Netherlands, Piet

[@madeleinevangall1446]

YOU DONT NOW WHAT YOU TALK ABOUT CHAME. 😢

[@melvinjansen2338]

Yeah i Just got this one in my suggested video's and im pretty happy. Also Dutch

[@djnorth2020]

As a long time listener, I'm always happy about the quality of this podcast. This video opened a whole new appreciation for the high quality of language. Not the stereotype rally English I'm used to but genuinely good pronunciation and excellent vocabulary. Material has mostly been by Finns for Finns about Finland but I can see this one in particular having interest abroad.

[@Korpen_1979]

Great interview 👍 Thank you from Sweden 🇸🇪💛🇺🇦💙🇬🇧💛🇫🇮💙🇪🇺

[@cindypomerleau950]

Thank you for gathering all your English videos under your playlists. Much appreciated. Subscribed !😊

[@JurassicJX]

Peace and respect to Finland 🇫🇮 from Jurassic coast 🇬🇧

[@candelas31]

Great work, excellent interview with the best expert

[@tonisiro]

The Nato expension rhetoric is just a legend. When this sentence was supposed to be said, the Warshaw pact was still existing, so, how westerners could have known in advance ? It makes absolutely no sense. Just repeating this as an anecdote is already too much. There are more concrete documents that have been signed and that were violated blatantly by the Russians. The Budapsest memorendum is one of them. Why not talking about this rather then this anecdote that just feeds the Kremlin narrative.

[@proselytizingorthodoxpente8304]

Russia is very good at breaking existing international agreements, while demanding everyone else adhere to non existent agreements

[@ewartmouton]

"Russia would view further (NATO) eastward expansion as a potential military threat" "In Ukraine, these include fears that the issue could potentially split the country in two, leading to violence or even, some claim, civil war, which would force Russia to decide whether to intervene." "Not only does Russia perceive encirclement, and efforts to undermine Russia's influence in the region, but it also fears unpredictable and uncontrolled consequences which would seriously affect Russian security interests." 1 Feb 2008, leaked cable "RUSSIA'S NATO ENLARGEMENT REDLINE" by William Burns, former Ambassador to Russia, current CIA director

[@tonisiro]

@@ewartmouton Said the Kremnlin or agents of the Kremlin.. And please could you all stop to write in capitals. Screaming at people do not make your total lack of argumentation stronger or more valid. It is just sounding even more ridiculous.

[@cproteus]

Thank you, algorithm.

[@crazypaulinquebec]

Very insightful and interesting questions by the Futucast interviewer and MG's answers were eye-opening. Many thanks from Canada!

[@kenithandry5093]

Excellent discussion! Thanks.

[@mm5478]

Wow! Loved this show! Very smart & in English. Thanks!!

[@user-di2sk2lk6c]

Thank you for an outstanding interview of Mark Galeotti. The rational views and suggestions are exactly what all Europeans need to hear AND DO SOMETHING ABOUT !!!!

[@coomberaider]

Always a pleasure to hear Mark respondingvto thought provoking questions. I look forward to listening to some of your other Output in English . Glad I found you and Thank you!

[@gosiahajdo2584]

I really admire how smart and brave Finnland fought against the Soviet Union during the Winter War. Greetings from Germany

[@cosmos99ify]

Not surprising that Nazis supported Nazis. But the Russians taught them all a lesson. They will do it again. Germany and Finland have no chance.

[@Cao-Cao]

You know they lost it, right? So did Germany by the way.

[@gosiahajdo2584]

@@Cao-Cao yes I know. Did I write that I admired their glory? I am Polish living in Germany by the way.

[@EerikRed]

​@@Cao-Cao It don't matter to us, Finland kept it's independence which is more important. Ever heard what pyrrhic victory means? I didn't expect so..

[@Cao-Cao]

@@EerikRed What independence exactly? You follow orders from Brussels and Washington. Weak nation, weak leaders.

[@JonGabriel]

This is my first time on your channel and really appreciate the smart perspectives and conversation. Thanks for the English-language episode -- I'm a Finnish-American, but you speak English far better than I speak Finnish. Keep up the great work!

[@KA-jm2cz]

Ei se nyt niin vaikeeta ole. Pullo pontikkaa, niin jo luistaa leukaperät.

[@danlindy9670]

“Naapurissa asuu karhu.” As an American whose Finnish grandfather died fighting the Russians in the Winter War, I appreciate being able to listen to these interviews in English. They help me to understand better what it was like for my grandfather, and what it is like now, for Finns to live with an such an unfriendly and aggressive neighbor always on the prowl.

[@NordicOpinion]

Your grandfather is s hero and protector of democracy - and many other values the Founding Fathers espoused. Kiitos💪

[@salvatoreventaglio3782]

So you know shit about your grandfather. He didn't fight against Russians,, but a Soviet Force that had an Ukrainian main compoment. Ignorance generates hatred and wars.

[@ilyaivanov7166]

What Finland was fighting for with Hitler during World War 2, was they alliance for democracy?))

[@henryseidel5469]

@@ilyaivanov7166 Indeed real history and after-made historiography are two totally different issues. Mannerheim marched eastward with Hitler and came back with Stalin...

[@ilyaivanov7166]

@@henryseidel5469 you mean Finland changed shoes during a conflict easily , where is a strong position of democratic country ?

[@greeneyeswideopen774]

Excellent interview! Listened with great interest.

[@jeremyraine4942]

Just discovered ur channel..the English language version anyway.. In the process of listening to Mark Galleotti's analysis.. Struck by his point about " th ed situation " being psychological rather than geo-strategic... Have subscribed..will certainly keep an eye out for the EL version...thanks

[@EricaFiore]

Hei Suomi from Wales ❤...

[@achenarmyst2156]

Mark is really phenomenal, whatever topic you present to him, he is well-informed, deliberate, intellectually brilliant and witty. Undispensable for a rounded picture of present-day Russia.

[@brandonlyon8632]

Thank you for the video, and for recording in English. As an American it is so helpful to hear European perspectives on this war.

[@neilmarshall2315]

An excellent interview, thank you

[@Feinman-di3ki]

Onpa hyvää englanninkieltä! Wau!

[@RawandCookedVegan]

Excellent interview. Thank you.

[@talesofcanterbury42]

Fantastic interview thank you

[@petersaunders349]

Excellent interview very informative

[@catsnads01]

Excellent, thank you!

[@victorrodgerivynelson4238]

Thank you for making english language content. Subscribed and will hope for more in the future!

[@MaryEspinoza-cx9wg]

Very informative episode, thank you. It's nice to be able to hear other countries' take on what is important and how people outside the States look at the world and it's foibles.

[@Possu81]

Fantastic interview.

[@ViggoHinrichsen]

Very good interview!

[@davidjones5980]

An excellent interview!

[@sferix]

Great conversation!

[@lomotil3370]

🎯 Key Takeaways for quick navigation: 00:17 🇫🇮 *The episode features an interview with historian Mark Galeotti discussing the historical connections between Finland, Russia, and NATO.* 01:23 🇷🇺 *The origin of the name "Russia" likely comes from the Finnish word for Sweden, highlighting historical connections shaped by war and invasion.* 03:41 🌍 *Mark Galeotti explains Putin's belief that he is defending Russia against a conspiratorial campaign by the West and how events since 2011 have shaped his worldview.* 09:29 🤝 *The discussion delves into the significance of NATO expansion and its impact on Russia's perception and geopolitical strategy.* 13:20 🇫🇮 *The conversation explores Finland's recent NATO membership, its historical relationship with Russia, and the nuances compared to Baltic states.* 23:14 🌐 *Putin's Russia supports divisive extremist movements globally to create tensions and hinder mobilization.* 25:29 🚧 *Russia orchestrated a refugee influx to Finland, causing a border dispute and political tension.* 27:18 🤝 *Finland faced a lose-lose situation in the border dispute, emphasizing the delicate balance in liberal democracies.* 30:18 🤔 *Resilience in liberal democracies involves compromises but must prioritize protecting core values.* 37:14 🌐 *Putin's concern for Russian minorities abroad is seen as rhetoric; leveraging their positive role could undermine his narrative.* 46:19 🌍 *Russia is seen as a potential security threat, but military establishments to repel an invasion are not being built, except by Poland.* 47:12 🤔 *Antagonistic relations with Russia are expected, with sanctions on technology and investment. Different countries have varying views on the level of danger.* 48:44 🌐 *Putin is waiting for Europe to split on the Ukraine question, using political challenges against itself. Short-term and long-term challenges to Europe's resilience are acknowledged.* 50:19 💬 *European actions depend on the outcome of the U.S. presidential elections. If Trump wins and reduces support for Ukraine, European countries may follow suit.* 54:59 💰 *Europe may not be able to replace U.S. assistance to Ukraine in case of a complete withdrawal. Building a war-oriented economy would take years.* Made with HARPA AI

[@gt4viking789]

Great interview and a real treat to listen to the views of a proper Scholar like Mark Galeotti. Thank you 👍🏼

[@emdpls]

Brilliant conversation

[@sodden666]

Thank you for this excellent interview.

[@elizabethmorton4904]

Thank you for that wonderful, and enormously helpful interview. The questions were just great, and Galeotti is always great to hear on Russia. I'm in Canada, and all the questions resulted in responses that I found very helpful to my perspective on the issues from here in Canada.

[@user-sh8mj1pn3u]

Ekat peukut irtos enkuks tehdystä jaksosta, jo ennen sen kuuntelemista 👍 lisää näitä

[@johnschlesinger2009]

Excellent. Highly informed and balanced analysis of this complex problem.

[@marksimpson6387]

I thought it was A joke

[@Cyndance]

Really loved this. Thank you. ~English speaker from Espoo.

[@dso4594]

Great interview

[@TheLastCrusader22]

I know it's not at all the point of the podcast, I'd just like to point out that "Garðaríki" does not mean Land of Towers, it means Land of Farms, or Land of Settlements, or Land of Village Houses/Farmhouses (there are some other meanings for garðr as well, it is for example the root of the English "yard"). It's cognate with the modern Scandinavian "gård" of the same meaning. It is also from where the Russian/Ukrainian word "grad", meaning town/city, comes from

[@user-fo5qx7xb7s]

I would like to assure you LastCrusader that there are other people in the world who find this discussion of language origins and similarities utterly fascinating. I studied Beowulf at university and have never lost this love of language. I was familiar with the term midgard but didn't know it related to the Russian grad. We are all related!! From Winnipeg Manitoba...

[@TheLastCrusader22]

​@@user-fo5qx7xb7s Yes, it truly is fascinating and especially for me as a Scandinavian, to see a word (or a local variant of it rather) I still use in my language today all over city names in Russia/Ukraine/the former USSR! It's interesting how so many words from the Old Norse language have changed so radically that I can no longer understand them, and yet a word like Garðaríki is so similar to the modern word (Gårdarike). And that is with my native language Swedish probably having the most loan words of the Scandinavian languages, especially from German. Window, for example, is still called vindu ("eye of the wind" and the cognate word for the English window) in Norwegian and vindue in Danish while it is "fönster" (from the German "fenster") in Swedish. The word "vindöga" exists in Swedish, but it is very archaic and certainly most people and especially not younger people would know what it is. I went on a rant there, oops! But yes, it's fascinating how big the Old Norse influence was on surrounding languages, especially for its time

[@SashavonTschin]

We should always support Finnland because they are good neighbors of the Baltics. Regards from Latvia

[@blueblubber6607]

Thumbs up, a very good and informative interview. This line of reasoning looks rather solid and compelling to me, although I admittedly still struggle to make up my mind between this and other (partly) differing opinions on this subject, like the one from Timothy Snyder or John Mearsheimer.

[@charleslloyd7762]

Your excellent English reaffirms my belief that Finns are some of the greatest people in the world. Your uncompromising love of freedom is an example to the whole world.

[@robertvanslooten9475]

What you wrote is bullshit.

[@judithbradford9130]

I am overjoyed to subscribe, this is excellent content! Being a huge fan of Finnish webcomic creators led me to study Finnish culture and history, and admire your mythology and art. I felt enormous pride and gratification when Finland joined NATO, much to the benefit of the alliance, despite abhorring the Russian aggression against which said alliance exists to protect us all. In recent years we Americans have had few opportunities for genuine national pride (being ourselves conscious of the danger our nation poses to the world unless we defeat our current fascist movement) but for the nation of Finland to join us in security partnership presents a fine instance of our treasured national and civilizational idea, of free people cooperating to the benefit of all and lending each other our strength, at need, to protect against ruin by barbarism, either bandits or grifters or thugs. And that is to be celebrated, for the splendid achievement it is; honor is gained by both who extend trust and reward it, make oaths and keep them, rule themselves rather than be reigned over by another.

[@kyyyni]

@judithbradford9130 Thank you from 🇫🇮! Couldn't agree more with you. Keep defending the truth, keep defending democracy!

[@goldendoggy8904]

Excellent interview and very informative!

[@voytekcyvr1936]

Very interesting interview with Mark, unfortunately I am not speaking Finnish. I will look for more of your English content. Kiitos

[@jorisberteloot6893]

Mr. Galeotti is a very wise man.

[@robertvanslooten9475]

Is he?

[@ennediend2865]

​@@robertvanslooten9475 STOP TROLLING BOTSKY !!🤢🤮

[@dalepickelman7281]

seems to me like he's a british agitator to rally against their rival russia....too bad we listen to these colonial scum overlords, when uk is fast becoming irrelevant

[@Macbrother]

Phenomenal interview with one of the best. As an American, thanks for the English upload. Subbed.

[@robertvanslooten9475]

One of the best what?

[@sixmillionaccountssilenced6721]

@@robertvanslooten9475 These idiots are lost in a bubble. That's why you NEVER see these "bests" debating anyone from the other side of the opinion like Mearsheimer, Sachs, Ritter, RFK etc. :DD

[@georgemcbride7857]

Ritter and the others of his same lunatic , autocratic delusional politics can only spout Putin propaganda that does not reflect any sense of reality and justice of moral responsibility.

[@danglingondivineladders3994]

​@@sixmillionaccountssilenced6721I've debated Mearsheimer. He isn't that knowledgeable. He gives answers his audience wants to hear. In reality his "hypothesis" makes zero sense. Finland proves him wrong but bots like you don't care and will whine and cry no matter the facts. Enjoy rg2.

[@skinnyTheCat]

Incredibly high quality interview by a great Interviewer! Happy I found you, and hoping for more English Interviews (And why not some swedish ones as well ;) Thanks!

[@louisaweiler5340]

Great podcast. Shall follow you from now on.

[@ralphhardie7492]

Excellent report Superb context picture Thanks for your work 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉

[@pen7759]

Well done ! Your questions was on point, and prof. Galeotti answered comprehensibly. One thing came up for me, this old political principle: Divide & Impera. russia, being not as strong as west follows this principle. This is a big concern in the long run. Thank you! More like this.

[@robertvanslooten9475]

More like this? Help!

[@davidlally592]

Excellent Soumi..!! From an Irishman (we in recent history, have many parallels).

[@matthewc4094]

Great discussion. I think that Mark is correct about Ukraine fatigue. However, what no one seems to talk about are the tens of thousands of Ukrainian property owners who have been dispossessed of their holdings by the Russian invasion. Not to mention the property owners in Free Ukraine who have had their buildings shelled and themselves or their relatives maimed by Russian bombs. If the West stops large scale military aid then the dispossessed will simply resort to undertake insurgencies either in the occupied areas of their country or Russia, until they get their land and buildings beck, plus recompense for other losses. It doesn’t matter therefore what the politicians say or what the peace treaty states - the fight to get back what’s yours will continue .. If any large scale take back of territory occurs then this will probably be terminal for Putin politically, and he will be handed over to the west for trial

[@Ultranationalist987]

My first time to watched you channel, very interesting discussion, i like English-speaking episodes because, I'm Somali and likes to get stay informed in these Global conflicts, i don't speak other than my mother tongue Somali and English language, So make for the audience English speaking channel to follow-up the recently event's in global politics and crisis, thank you these great discussions.

[@Julianjulipo]

Somali; this is a false narrative. NATO expansion to the Russian borders is the reason why Russia; not Putin is destroying Ukraine regime.

[@Julianjulipo]

Check NATO Bukharest decision. Read the RAND report etc. there is a Mountain of evidence to see that NATO wanted to provoke Russia; destroy it and fragment it into little mini states for easy economic exploitation by these imperialist powers.

[@my_username141]

Just ran into your channel and it was awesome! Thanks from the US by way of Djibouti 😉

[@martinvanoene7192]

THank You from Grimsby Ontario Canada!!

[@robertvanslooten9475]

Thanks for what?

[@Chrispy01a]

Incisive, eloquent & interesting - thank you both especially Mark Galeotti for a great listen.

[@anderslagerqvist2642]

Well, Finland joining Nato is a HUGE difference for Russia, the area of Kaleningrad and baltic countries. The baltic sea would be unsable for Russia in a conflict.

[@megawutt]

They can make it usable, lol. Do you really believe the US would exchange Helsinki for let's say Boston when Russia inevitably deals with Finland and the Baltic chihuahuas? Grow up!

[@kyyyni]

"Grow up", said the poster of so-called psychological warfare in the most adolescent tier. Was it the "bring your child to work" day at the troll farm?

[@megawutt]

@@kyyyni I know it's hard for you to accept it but that's the truth, man. If Russia attacks you, the US ain't coming to your rescue. You're screwed.

[@ljubosvetijeljiski7023]

Thank you!

[@medeology4660]

No, both the Finnish "Ruotsi" and "Rus" come from the swedish word "ro" which means "to row" (pronounced "roo" or "rue") The people who went viking down the Dnipro came from the coast north of today's Stockholm called Roslagen, Land of the rowers - or literally: "Rower's law", meaning the land where the rowing people make the laws.

[@stephenhill545]

Not so according to research. Roslagens population was too small to have had such an influence.

[@True000spirit]

The land was Roden in Finland known as Ruotsi. The people were ros and the territory was sometimes called as Roslagen mainly I suppose by the swedes. I dont believe the ro thing at all. Why would any tribe call themselves rowers? In Nestors chronicle it is very clearly said that the varangians were different tribes, swedes, rus etc

[@KA-jm2cz]

'Roslagen' is probably loan word for old Finnic 'ruotsi' word that comes from rowing sound and has mostly mean enemies that come with boats like Swedish many times did. Word is circulated all over Baltic sea and are now in Finnish words of Ruotsi and ryssä that is base of Rysland->Russia.

[@True000spirit]

@@KA-jm2cz Roslagen actually means Ros law as Danelagen means Danish Law, might also sometimes have refered to skeppslag ,shipteam. the Ros and Swedes were different tribes

[@medeology4660]

@@KA-jm2cz How would that happen, since Finnish speakers did not go west and settle in today's Sweden, while norse speakers went east? Did some norse speakers go to today's Finland, change what they called themselves and then everyone "at home" learned that exonym and start to use it about themselves? Has that ever happened anywhere?

[@nHautamaki]

I have heard the argument recently that one of if not Russia's biggest problem with NATO expansion is it is absolutely killing their arms industry because joining NATO means adopting NATO standard weaponry and abandoning Russian. Russia cannot fund a competitive arms industry without exporting massive amounts of arms to all its old Warsaw pact vassals. Now Russia is losing India too, and likely Vietnam, they lost China a while ago. The Russian arms industry was their second or third most profitable and important industry, behind only O&G and on par with food/fertilizer.

[@robertvanslooten9475]

Bla bla bla .....

[@JorgenRomeMojo]

​@@robertvanslooten9475 exellent argument, u stupid bot😂

[@anthonycook6613]

Look out, nHautamaki ... Robbie Bobby van Slooten is after you! You can't beat him with facts because he has the most intelligent comebacks the world has ever seen ;-)

[@anthonycook6613]

@@robertvanslooten9475 Did you know that "bla bla bla" is actually a word in Finland? The Finnish language has a very rich vocabulary, and it has a lot of words to describe very specific things, people and actions. You can also use Finnish verbs in different forms and voices, which makes them very versatile. For instance, the verb "blablablataan" is present and passive. It means "No argument can be presented here, because the participant is a dumbass". But you can also say "blablablahan", which gives the word a more active voice - it means the speaker is saying " *I* cannot present an argument here, because *I'm* a dumbass". I really recommend that you give this language a try - it seems like you've mastered a few basic words already, and you just need to get the endings right.

[@burgi6236]

Very intersting, thanks from Germany 😊

[@MadameDeSquiggles]

Helpful analysis, thanks!

[@alfonsasgrinevicius7477]

That was fine and informative. Thanks. I remember Mark giving a lecture, perhaps in ~ 2018, in Lithuania, Kaunas.

[@user-wy8nm6ms4v]

Excellent - thank you Mark for your insight and clarity.

[@robertvanslooten9475]

He is clair to me in another way than you meant.

[@gmw3083]

​​​@@robertvanslooten9475He didn't waste any time getting into falsehoods. 3:40 He claims that putin wrongly believes there's some sort of western agenda to harm Russia. Lloyd Austin, Lindsay Graham and Biden have said as much numerous times. There are other examples. For those who think it's all post SMO rhetoric, John McCain was saying similar things on visits to Keeve during Obamas reign....

[@anthonycook6613]

@@gmw3083 Quotations?

[@gmw3083]

@@anthonycook6613 I don't do spoon feeding. Find them yourself. Or stay lost.

[@anthonycook6613]

​@@gmw3083 Wow, that was a little defensive! Almost as though, if you had to dig up any actual quotes, they wouldn't really back up your claim. I mean, that's fine ... but I hope you'll be ok with my new KZbin channel called "GMW says he has sex with vegetables". You did say that, right? True, I don't have any actual *quotes* of you saying it, but that's not MY problem. You can always find the quotes yourself ... can't you?

[@slashingbison2503]

Great interview.

[@TheRealSteveEllis]

English viewer, new to channel. Enjoyed this very much

[@Arunamatata495]

Great interview. I personally think Alexander Stubb, if he's presid, will really have a big influence on getting the EU to wake up !

[@user-oc6dh2yp2w]

So would his competitor, no?

[@wlhjr77]

This was a interesting discussion, I learned alot about russia relations, thank you.

[@robertvanslooten9475]

Be careful!

[@wlhjr77]

@@robertvanslooten9475 care to elaborate?

[@paulmurray8922]

Brilliant interview! He's outlined so much with which I agree (as if that matters😂), particularly about the West's response and the lack of a real Ukraine strategy because of an unwillingness to face and discuss differences within the bloc.

[@akmoris]

Btw. I’m American, from Maryland. Love the English version!

[@jippoti2227]

Kannattaisiko tehdä enemmän englanninkielisiä haastattejuja? Potentiaalin yleisön määrä olisi silloin valtavasti suurempi. Ainakin minun korvaani englantisi on äidinkielen tasolla, joten jenkitkin jaksaisi kuunnella.

[@sannip7404]

Thank you, this was good analysis. Just wanted to note re: Russia's approach towards Finland vs the Baltic States - Finland does not have a large ethnic Russian population present, while in Latvia and Lithuania, already in early 1990s, right after those countries' re-gaining of independence, Russia made it's policy to use the Russian speakers to put pressure on those countries - this is called the Karaganov doctrine.

[@MrBallynally2]

And Latvia did it more or less right and incorporated russian culture and language into the state. Lithuania did it differently. And Ukraine did the worst, de-russify the Donbas and supporting nazi ideology.

[@GoDLiKeKakashi]

Lithuania didn't have a large Russian minority like Latvia and Estonia. The Poles have basically always been a bigger minority than Russians ever were and more troublesome since Russians are more spread out across the country thus making them less of a problem overall. Are you sure you didn't mean Latvia and Estonia?

[@markb3786]

@@MrBallynally2 Stop with the Putin nonsense.

[@ladoga]

Ruotsi comes from Roslagen. (Coastal area of Sweden that faces Finland.) Roslagen roughly means "rowing parish" (any Swedes correct if I'm wrong). So Ros/Rus might have been what rowers manning raiding and trading boats called thenselves. That's also where Varangians that founded the Kyivan Rus came from. Grand duchy of Moscow later adopted this old name for their emerging empire.

[@bubbuvanpelt2491]

Good interwiev, greatings from Poland

[@SimonParker-hv6uu]

The Baltic states aren't a homogeneous group. Estonian language is very similar to Finnish. Lithuania about 5% are native Russian speakers. In Latvia however about 50% of the population is ethnic Russian. You can't really speak of them as the Baltic states as if they're all the same.

[@henrikmanitski1061]

You overestimated the percentage of ethnic Russians in Latvia by 2 times - the actual number is around 25%. In Estonia, the number of Russians has dropped from the height of 475000 (>30%) in 1989 to 306000 in 2023 (23%). The trend is downward.

[@brianbergman1454]

This was an EXCELLENT Summary both individuals were knowledgeable and well versed

[@christianfaust5141]

Very clever analysis, thank you

[@MAJOR-D]

First time watching your channel your very professional thank you

[@richmondpattonprehn4383]

Excellent interview and discussion. I’ll monitor this channel for future content in English.

[@nicholasrckent8609]

This rattle and break game is going on everywhere. Individually harmless the collective velocity is beyond dangerous.

[@robertvanslooten9475]

You're right.