Saimaa Canal
The Soviet forces were concentrated on the area east of the city of Vyborg, from where the attack started, through the southern village of Tali, northwards to Ihantala (Petrovka). This was the only suitable exit terrain for armoured forces out of the Karelian Isthmus, wide, broken by small lakes and limited by Saimaa Canal on the west and the River Vuoksi on the east.