Aired: 10/14/2024
The United States and the Soviet Union worked closely together during World War II to defeat Hitler's Germany. However, the Allied standoff and ruthless competition for Nazi weapons technology began behind the scenes even before the end of the war and escalated rapidly. The superpowers are also seeking a stronger foothold in the Arctic.
The technological race between the superpowers is intensifying as rocket development and nuclear testing is carried out with the help of scientists imported from Germany. The need for intelligence is enormous and spy balls and spy planes are flying around the North Pole and the northern skies. Finland, the Soviet Union's neighbor, becomes an arena for active intelligence activities.
The size of nuclear tests is increasing and bombers and spy planes are flying further north. The United States increases its activities in Greenland, while the Soviet Union opens a nuclear test site in the north. Increasing espionage leads to border and airspace violations in Finland. Norway strengthens its defensive line in the north and increases the number of troops in response to the growing threat of attack. Sweden is seen as a potential future nuclear power. It also has the fourth strongest air force in the world.
The superpower race is moving to a new level. The Soviet Union has active space and missile technology development in the North. It is opening a nuclear submarine base in the Arctic and submarines are already sailing to the North Pole. The US is building radar networks for bombers and intercontinental missiles. The Nordic countries are waking up to the growing threat of nuclear war and worrying about the impact of large-scale nuclear tests in the region. In Norway, the revelation of US spying activities is causing a major crisis.
The East and the West are failing in their attempts to limit the threat posed by nuclear weapons. The Soviet Union increases missile activity on the Kola Peninsula. The United States builds an extensive nuclear weapons network under ice and prepares for a Soviet attack with a plan to drop thousands of nuclear weapons. The Nordic countries are also on the list of nuclear targets. The superpower race is wreaking havoc in the Arctic and claiming lives in space. Finland is under pressure to cooperate militarily and President Kekkonen's role is being questioned abroad. Norway tries to mend relations with the Soviet Union.
There is deep mistrust between the two sides and the Cold War becomes volatile. The Soviet Union threatens NATO with a neutron bomb and actively exercises in its border areas. NATO deploys more missiles in Europe and organises a massive military exercise. Soviet submarines invade Swedish and Finnish waters. Sweden increases its readiness in the north and Norway builds bunkers. Finland strengthens its air force and control of Lapland. A Soviet missile strays into Finland. In the end, nuclear war was just a push of a button away.
