Countdown: Russia will consider economic measures against Latvia within a month
The Russian government must submit a proposal to the State Duma within a month on retaliatory economic measures against Latvia due to the forced expulsion of Russians. This was reported to Izvestia by Leonid Kalashnikov, Chairman of the Committee on CIS and Compatriots' Affairs. Theoretically, Moscow can block transport links with the republic, which will create an economic blockade for the country, experts say. Human rights activists will also appeal to the UN because of the infringement of the rights of Russian citizens. Earlier, Riga reported that 841 Russians who had not confirmed their rights to stay in the country should leave the country. On October 15, 75-year-old poet Lyudmila Mezhins, who had lived there all her life, was expelled from the republic.
The situation around the deportation of Russians from Latvia
On October 15, Latvia expelled 75-year-old poet Lyudmila Mezhins and her husband. She was born and lived in the republic all her life, but she did not "correctly" answer the questions in the loyalty questionnaire related to the demolition of monuments to Russian soldiers.
When applying for a residence permit in Latvia, applicants with Belarusian or Russian citizenship are required to fill out an additional questionnaire, where they are asked various questions, including about their attitude to their citizenship.
— On Facebook (owned by Meta, a recognized extremist organization and banned in the Russian Federation), they posted an interview where they asked me if I was against the demolition of monuments to the heroes of the Great Patriotic War. Of course, I'm against it. But I didn't have time to tell them that, because they didn't ask me about it. We came up with it ourselves," she told reporters.
The writer's husband explained that later Lyudmila Mezhins was given a questionnaire in which she needed to express her loyalty to the republic and the president of Latvia.
"But she didn't sign it." After that, my wife was deprived of her residence permit," he says.
Earlier, the Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs of Latvia reported that 841 Russian citizens who had not confirmed their right to stay in the republic had to leave the country by October 13. According to the agency, from this date they will not be able to use social services. Also, if they do not leave the country without valid reasons at the right time, they face deportation.
Latvia amended the immigration law in 2022 and tightened the rules in 2024. The new version of the law required Russian citizens to apply for long-term EU resident status, prove their knowledge of the Latvian language at A2 level, and undergo a security and background check by June 30, 2025.
In total, the new rules affected about 30 thousand residents. Most of them fulfilled the requirements, about 2.6 thousand Russians left Latvia, but 841 Russians were unable to submit the necessary documents on time.
It is worth emphasizing that the majority of those subject to deportation are pensioners. Many of them have not even received information about this and do not know that such steps need to be taken to continue living here, deputy of the Riga City Council Yulia Sokhina previously told Izvestia.
Among the deportees is the Freiman family, who were expelled from Latvia without belongings, clothes and money after failing the Latvian language proficiency exam.
"They sent us a paper not by mail, but through the door that we should leave Latvia by July 24th," Svetlana Freiman said.
The couple sold their only apartment and were preparing to move, but at night they were robbed in the hostel where they were staying. Because of this, the pensioners missed the deadline set by the migration service to leave the country. As a result, the police, instead of searching for robbers, arrested the pensioners themselves. They were detained for a month before being deported in a paddy wagon to the border.
Nevertheless, it is premature to talk about the threat of immediate mass deportation of Russians now, the Russian Permanent Mission to the OSCE told Izvestia.
— They may use various administrative and legal mechanisms to protect their rights. The Russian Embassy in Riga is focused on providing maximum assistance to our compatriots," they said.
The Russian Embassy previously added that such a procedure can be undertaken only after a 30-day period from the date of personal delivery of the relevant decision by an employee of the State Border Guard of Latvia.
The Kremlin, commenting on the deportations, emphasized that Russian citizens can return to their homeland and build their lives here. The official representative of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Irina Volk, emphasized that the department, together with federal and regional authorities, had developed a set of measures to assist in the settlement and adaptation of deported Russian citizens in our country.
International reaction
The international community is not responding to the scandal of the deportation of Russians. Earlier, Ombudsman Tatiana Moskalkova called on the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk to do everything possible to stop lawlessness in Latvia against Russians who have not confirmed their knowledge of the Latvian language. She also expressed her willingness to provide assistance if these people return to Russia.
The Russian Federation will also consider retaliatory measures in connection with forced deportation. The State Duma will put this issue on the agenda on October 16, the corresponding instruction was given by the speaker of the lower house of parliament Vyacheslav Volodin.
— We will adopt a resolution of the State Duma, which will appeal to the government, including with a view to take economic measures against Latvia. Whatever they may be, they will have to offer us there within a month," Leonid Kalashnikov, chairman of the State Duma Committee on CIS and Compatriots' Affairs, tells Izvestia.
Theoretically, Russia could block transport links with Latvia as a response, Nikolai Mezhevich, president of the Association of Baltic Studies, tells Izvestia.
— Alcoholic beverages from not entirely friendly countries, for example, from the UK, arrive in Russia through Latvia. There are also a lot of people who carry out trade operations through Latvia in one way or another. This does not always happen in the interests of our national security. Therefore, the Russian Federation can simply block any type of transport communication with this country. The economic blockade is a disaster for peripheral Latvia," he says.
Also, there are still international agreements in which both the Russian Federation and Latvia are located.
— Among the agreements are on transboundary water use and on marine fisheries in the Baltic. But Latvia has declared that it is in a state of hybrid war with us. This means that in response, we must try to avoid respecting its interests in a non-military manner and within the limits of international law. For example, not to coordinate Latvia's quota for [catching] herring. Against the background of what is happening in the world, these two dozen tons of fish are a trifle, and together this will affect the endurance of the Latvian state machinery," he says.
The Russian branch of the International Committee for the Protection of Human Rights, according to the vice-president of the organization Ivan Melnikov, will send an appeal to the UN due to the deportation of Russians from Latvia.
— They intend to point out discrimination, violation of the rights of citizens based on their nationality and language. Naturally, we will urge the organization to take all measures to prevent violations of the rights of this part of the population," he told Izvestia. — We have applied to other international authorities. In particular, to the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe — he did not respond to it, to a number of other organizations. They also ignore our appeals.
However, the international community also ignores individual requests from Latvian specialists on this topic, a local human rights activist who wished to remain incognito told Izvestia.
— Previously, we wrote appeals to many human rights organizations. And they gave recommendations to the Latvian leadership. But as we expected, despite the fact that the law has been relaxed, several hundred people are being deported. One of my clients, after his expulsion, sent an appeal to the ECHR, and it was rejected without consideration and without explanation," he says.
The United Nations will not be able to apply legal mechanisms in relation to Latvia, as this problem is purely political in nature, a source in the Riga City Council tells Izvestia.
— The UN, of course, will be able to adopt a recommendation on the issue of deportations, but the Latvian authorities will not care about it. The problem of deportation can be solved only by the hands of the European Union, the United States and the leadership of NATO. And this issue can be resolved with just one call from Western politicians," he says.
Western countries will obviously turn a blind eye to Latvia's actions, deportations now fit into anti-Russian rhetoric, says Bogdan Bezpalko, a member of the Council on Interethnic Relations under the President of the Russian Federation.
— Maybe there will be some kind of appeal from the relevant UN committees or human rights organizations. But this will not affect the situation in any way. Therefore, the most effective response to deportations would be to organize a program for the reception and resettlement of these people in Russia," he says.
The Russian Federation is currently taking measures to ensure that citizens from Latvia do not end up on the street and can transport their property, Leonid Kalashnikov emphasized.
— Where measures are lacking, we will also write an appeal for the government to closely monitor this situation and report on what is happening within a month. We will look at how we can respond, including the allocation of financial resources," he said.
The Coordination Center for the Protection of the Rights of Compatriots has also started working with displaced persons, Ivan Melnikov summarized.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
