As a Scandinavia-oriented Swedish-speaking Finn, he was believed to be more to the taste of the Soviet Union's leadership than his predecessor Väinö Tanner.
Sebagai orang Finlandia berbahasa Swedia yang berorientasi pada Skandinavia, ia dipercaya lebih memiliki rasa kepemimpinan Uni Soviet ketimbang pendahulunya Väinö Tanner.