The lessons learned from COVID-19 are not only about virology. The pandemic has intensified the dilemma between human and material values in national politics and reiterated the ibtter contestation over the world order. In this paper, Mika Kerttunen, Eneken Tikk,, and Helen Eenmaa discuss the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on politics and policymaking, as well as data movement, public services, and the role that the pandemic played in shaping (inter)national attitudes, especially among small states.