AH Challenge: Finland joins the Allies

And yet there were German troops all-over the Finnish front during the Continuation War, which was not alltogether seperate from WW2.
Being a co-belligrent doesn't make 'em a none-Axis participant.
 

yourworstnightmare

Banned
Donor
1. Finland was allied with Germany, that's correct, but Finland never concidered themselves a member of the axis.
2. The alliance with Germany was mainly to prevent another invasion from the USSR, which all was fucked up due to Operation Barbarossa, and Stalin's second attempt of invading Finland (of course USSR had no reason to believ they were not in was versus Finland since there were german troops in Lappland, Finland however did not concidered themselves in war with USSR before the Russians attacked).
3. Finland's enemy and fear lied East, and the protection of the Eastern Border was the most important. Finland could not join the Allies, since the Allies was in no position to help defend Finland from the Russians.
 
I have heard that the UK did formally go to war with Finland at some point fairly late on in the war.
That wikipedia says this though somewhat makes me doubt it though.

Yeah, UK did go to war with Finland at some point. For this reason, The Allied Control Commission in Finland had both British and Soviet members. (although great majority of them were Soviets)
 
This is supposed to convince us despite evidence to the contrary? Finland was fighting the Soviet Union. It was not fighting with the Nazis. It was not fighting any other Allies. It was just fighting the USSR. The Winter War was seperate from WWII.

The Winter War WAS separate from WW2. The Continuation War wasn't. Finland chose to attack the USSR in the Continuation war to recoup losses from the Winter War. From the beginning, the Continuation War was pursed by Finland in cooperation with Germany. True, Finland did not always bow to what Germany wanted and they had their own war aims separate from what Germany's were, but they were as much an ally of Germany as Japan, who if you will remember only fought the western allies (until attached by the USSR at the very end)and had very different war aims.
 
From the beginning, the Continuation War was pursed by Finland in cooperation with Germany. True, Finland did not always bow to what Germany wanted and they had their own war aims separate from what Germany's were, but they were as much an ally of Germany as Japan, who if you will remember only fought the western allies (until attached by the USSR at the very end)and had very different war aims.

1. Finland was not a signatory of the Tripartite Pact and, at least technically, not part of the Axis. This means she was not bound by any obligations towards Axis nations, not even Germany before the short-lived Ryti-Ribbentrop Agreement of 1944.
2. The US did not declare war on Finland (as it did to the Tripartite Pact signatories), and Finland was the only German ally that was allowed to try its own war criminals.

The Allies, especially the USA, de facto accepted Finland as a special case amongst Germany's allies and thus treated it differently from the others.
 
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1. Finland was not a signatory of the Tripartite Pact and, at least technically, not part of the Axis. This means she was not bound by any obligations towards Axis nations, not even Germany before the short-lived Ryti-Ribbentrop Agreement of 1944.
2. The US did not declare war on Finland (as it did to the Tripartite Pact signatories), and Finland was the only German ally that was allowed to try its own war criminals.

The Allies, especially the USA, de facto accepted Finland as a special case amongst Germany's allies and thus treated it differently from the others.

Agreed. Finland was not formally a member of the Axis. However just because Finland was not a formal member of the AntiComintern pact, this does not mean it was not an ally of convenience with Germany in the war against the Soviet Union. True, Finland was treated as a special case, especially by the USA, but I don't see how this really matters. Finland made a calculated choice to ally with Germany in its war with Russia for some very legitimate and understandable reasons having nothing to do with Nazisim and the aims of the Axis states. Although in retrospect a poor decision, it was not a bad thing considering the nature of the Stalin regime and the recent Soviet aggression, nor do Finns need to hide from this fact by claiming that, somehow they were fighting their own little war with the USSR apart from Germany. Also, had the Axis triumuphed, Finland would probably have benefitted by significant territorial gains in Karelia, and a special place in Hitler's new Europe.
 

yourworstnightmare

Banned
Donor
Finalnd's main aim was security of their easern borders. Didn't matter who they allied, just that they were allied with someone who could help them. that someone happened to be Hitler. It's not really more weird than that.
 
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