To find Western Europe's largest artillery practice range, you have to head north — far north.

Rovajärvi lies just above the Arctic Circle, outside the town of Rovaniemi, in Finnish Lapland. And in late May, as young conscripts complete their final weeks of training on firing artillery cannons, it's cold enough for the soldiers to bundle up in thick gloves and neck warmers.

Finnish conscript Iivari Luukari has been training for months on these howitzers, which are identical to those currently used in Europe's bloodiest conflict since the Second World War.

Finnish conscripts stand near a howitzer at the Rovajärvi artillery range. (Emma Godmere/CBC)

"I think that it's good to prepare for the worst-case scenario, like what happened in Ukraine," he told CBC News, "but I'm hopeful that th

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