Finland is known for its picturesque winters, its world-class education system, and its capital, Helsinki, which routinely tops global lists of the world’s most liveable cities.

But it also has a fragile history. The tiny European nation shares a long border with Russia, and despite celebrating a century of independence, the threat of its larger neighbor constantly looms in the background.

Finland has an ongoing policy of political neutrality and was recently ranked as the world’s happiest country. But it’s always prepared for war.

How Finland has prepared for outside attacks

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Deep beneath the streets of Helsinki lies an elaborate network of tunnels and caverns capable of housing the city’s entire population of 640,000.

The bunker is equipped with food, bedding, medical facilities, and even an underground ice skating rink, the Australian Broadcasting Company reported.

Many of the areas are for public use, including parking lots, swimming pools, children’s playgrounds and shopping malls. In the winter, residents use them to escape the freezing climate.

But if a fierce conflict was to break out, these shelters could house people underground for up to two weeks.

According to the public broadcaster, it will hold 240 bathrooms and a specific area where people can shower if they’ve been contaminated during a chemical attack.

Experts say Russia is the only real threat to the smaller country, and the only reason these bunkers might be used for their intended purpose.

The Finnish capital is located around 155 miles from the Russian border.

Why Finland is suspicious of Russia


A protester wearing a Putin mask joins a demonstration in Senate Square in Helsinki. Getty Images

Finland was officially declared independent of Russia just over a century ago, but it remains a potential target for its neighbor.

The smaller country had struggled for more than 100 years to assert its independence from Moscow, before the Finnish Declaration of Independence was finally signed in 1917.

The two countries have long shared a border, and Finland has suffered a history of invasion by Russia.

Their relationship inspired an actual term called “Finlandization” — the process of being obliged to accept the interests of a more powerful neighboring country, in order to keep its independence and own political system.

There’s been a lot of discussion around the prospective outbreak of war recently.

Last week, Donald Trump suggested the US could be drawn into a major global conflict with Russia if it had to defend a smaller country that it’s obligated to protect under NATO, like Montenegro.

If Russia was to go to war with the west, Finland — as its closest neighbor — would be in a vulnerable position.