in 1917. Iceland declared its independence from Denmark in 1944, while Denmark was under the occupation of Nazi Germany. Iceland was encouraged to do this by the British and American armed forces that were defending Iceland from Nazi invasion. The Wehrmacht invaded Norway in 1940 and the German Army occupied all of Norway until May 1945. With the acquiescence of the Kingdom of Sweden, German troops moved from northern Norway, across northern Sweden, into Finland, which had become an ally of Nazi Germany. Then, in the spring of 1941, the German Army and the Finnish Army invaded the Soviet Union together. The Republic of Finland had a grievance against the Soviet Union because the Red Army had invaded southeastern Finland in the Winter War (1939–40) and had taken a large area of territory away from Finland. Sweden remained a neutral country during the First World War, the Korean War and the Cold War. In 1945, Norway, Denmark and Iceland were founding members of the United Nations. Sweden joined the U.N. soon after. Finland joined during the 1950s. The first Secretary General of the United Nations, Trygve Lie, was a Norwegian citizen. The second Secretary General of the United Nations, Dag Hammarskjöld, was a Swedish citizen. Thus the people of the Scandinavian Peninsula had a strong influence in international affairs during the 20th century. In 1949, Norway, Denmark and Iceland became founding members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation for their defence against East Germany, the Soviet Union and all other potential invaders, and these three countries remain members as of 2021. Sweden and Finland joined the European Union in 1995. Norway, however, remains outside the Union. See also Fennoscandia References Peninsulas of Europe Geography of Sweden Geography of Norway Geography of Finland Peninsula Fennoscandia