Finnish terrain tests 5,000 troops in multinational Kuhmo exercise

A month-long multinational military exercise in eastern Finland challenged 5,000 troops with the country’s flat terrain, extensive wetlands, and an unusually warm late winter, according to a report by Finnish public broadcaster Yle.

The drills, held in Kuhmo’s Vuosango training area, involved forces from Finland and six allied nations, serving as the final combat test for conscripts completing their service in June. French soldiers, deployed in Finland since March, noted that even the late-winter conditions—considered mild by Finnish standards—proved warmer than expected.

Crossing bogs and waterways emerged as a persistent difficulty for foreign units unaccustomed to Finland’s landscape. A French private identified only as Tom (per military policy restricting enlisted personnel from giving full names in interviews) described the terrain as a significant operational hurdle.

The exercise, among the largest of its kind in Finland this spring, follows earlier allied training in Kainuu region, where troops also adapted to local conditions—including translating Finnish military slang like munkki (a portable field stove) into NATO terminology.