For decades, Russia has accused Latvia of oppressing its Russian inhabitants. Now, Russian President Vladimir Putin has spoken out clearly, with a hint of threat in his statements.
“I do not believe that happiness comes to the houses of those who pursue such a policy. If they implement such a policy towards people who wanted to live in this or that country, work there, bring benefits to the country, and are now treated like pigs, then they will ultimately experience such a mess within their countries.”
Putin specifically refers to the large portion of the 1.8 million people in Latvia who speak Russian as their mother tongue. About a quarter of the population in Latvia are ethnically Russian. However, only half of them have Latvian citizenship. The rest, around 180,000, have the status of “non-citizens of Latvia”.
He leaves open what he specifically means by possible consequences in his statement.
Image: Kremlin.ru, Direct Line with Vladimir Putin (2021-06-30) 16.jpg, CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (Image size changed)
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