Over the past few days, international news outlets have been asking whether a second Trump presidency would signify a US retreat from Europe and Nato.
Finnish papers on Monday approach the issue from the viewpoint of Finland's bilateral agreement with the United States.
Iltalehti spoke to international political expert Risto E. J. Penttilä about Finland's "Plan B," which is the DCA, a significant defence cooperation agreement between Finland and the United States due to be signed next week. It would allow for the construction of US military infrastructure in Finland and for American soldiers to arrive in the country at short notice.
Henri Vanhanen of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs (FIIA) meanwhile told Ilta-Sanomat that the US won't want to appear to have a diminishing global role, particularly in relation to China.
"I don't believe that Trump would want to position himself as a president who weakens the US's superpower status," he told IS.
Schooled by Estonia
Several stories in Helsingin Sanomat explore Finland's dwindling performance on the the OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa), a standardised triennial exam for 15-year-olds, which showed a growing segment of weak readers.
The decline isn't just about schools and teachers, it's also about how families approach reading—whether or not parents subscribe to papers and magazines or talk about what they're reading, according to HS.
"At the same time as our Pisa results have declined, the role of one's socio-economic background has been increasing," language researcher Leea Lakka, told HS.
Estonia's ninth graders are meanwhile among the study's top performers in math, reading and science. HS attempts to tease out the differences between the two school systems, and there are a few.
In Estonia, teachers have more autonomy than in any other country participating in the Pisa study. Kids in the Baltic country also study literature as a separate subject. The survey further found that classrooms in Estonia are quieter than here. In Finland, 27 percent, and in Estonia, 16 percent of pupils reported that they don't hear what the teacher is saying in the majority of their classes.
Let it snow
It's a snowy start to the week in Finland, reports Maaseudun tulevaisuus.
A low-pressure system approaching from the southwest is dumping snow early in the week, especially in southern and eastern parts of the country. In some of these areas, snow accumulation could exceed 10 centimetres.
But while southern parts will see relatively mild temperatures in the coming days, the mercury is dropping up north. Meteorologists expect clear skies in Lapland to bring -20 to -30-degree weather to the region.
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