On January 27, 1918 government forces began to disarm the Russian in Pohjanmaa and the Social Democratic Party organized a coup. After the war, tens of thousands of reds and suspected sympathizers were interned in camps, where thousands have died from execution or from malnutrition and disease. After a short monarchy, Finland became a presidential republic and Kaarlo Juho Ståhlberg was elected president in 1919. The Finnish-Russian border was determined by the Treaty of Tartu in 1920, largely due to the historical border. Finnish democracy survived the Lapua movement. The relationship between Finland and the Soviet Union was tense. Also, Germany's relations with Finland were not good.
In 1917, the population was 3 million inhabitans. The credit for agrarian reform was adopted after the Civil war increased the percentage of the population which owned capital. About 70% of workers were employed in agriculture and 10% in the industry. The largest export markets were the United Kingdom and Germany.
During the World War II, Finland fought the Soviet Union twice: in the Winter War of 1939-1940 after the Soviet Union attacked Finland and continuing the war in 1941-1944 following Operation Barbarossa, in which Germany invaded the Soviet Union. After that Finland made peace with the Soviet Union through the Moscow Armistice. This was followed by the Lapland War of 1944-1945, when Finland forced the Germans out of northern Finland.
Treaties signed in 1947 and 1948 with the Soviet Union included Finnish obligations, restrictions and repairs as well as other Finnish territorial concessions started in Moscow Peace Treaty of 1940. Finland was forced to give up the Finnish Karelia, Salla and Petsamo.
In 1950, half of the Finnish workers were occupied in agriculture and a third lived in urban areas. New jobs in manufacturing, services and trade quickly attracted people to the cities. In 1952 the Summer Olympics brought international visitors. Finland took part in trade liberalization in the World Bank, International Monetary Fund and the General Agreement on Rates and Trade. Despite close relations with the Soviet Union, Finland remained a market economy in Western Europe. Between 1970 and 1980, Finland has built one of the largest thriveing countries in the world. In 1981 the health state of president Urho Kekkonen forced him to retire after a function held for 25 years.
In 1980 the products of market regulation were weakend. Some state enterprises have been privatized and there have been some modest tax cuts. Finland joined the EU in 1995 and the euro in 1999.