Finland, seen as painstakingly avoiding any unpleasantness with the Soviet Union during the Cold War, was able to play the innocent, non-threatening neighbour for the KGB. But now it’s accepted that the image of Finland willingly accommodating Moscow’s economic and political ambitious had been a historical distortion and the covert stance that its intelligence and security services held shows its definite Western-leaning posture during a cautious period of its independence.
Supo (The Finnish Security Intelligence Service – Suojelupoliisi), established in 1948 had to appear for Moscow as a non-adversarial agency while maintaining a trustworthy relationship with its Western counterparts. Supo was established to replace its forerunner, Valpo (State police – Valtiollinen poliisi). Valpo was disbanded by the Finnish parliament in 1948, after a government investigation determined that communists who occupied it's leadership positions were involved in serious illegalities, including the disappearance of individuals after WWII.
Finland's geopolitical position attracted intensive intelligence operations from both sides of the Cold War lineup. (Pikemalt Eesti Elu 26.04.2019 paberlehes)
