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Latvia’s othering of Russian minority resembles policies of Nazi Germany.
Written by Ahmed Adel, Cairo-based geopolitics and political economy researcher
Ethnic Russians residing permanently in Latvia should be “isolated” if they are deemed not to be loyal to the state, Latvian President Egils Levits said. Such a move demonstrates that the liberal experiment in the Baltics has failed and is quickly descending into fascism.
“We see that some of the Russian community is disloyal to our country… Our task is to deal with them, to isolate them… They should simply be isolated,” he said on Latvijas Radio.
The majority of Latvians, according to Levits, have become “more nationalist and patriotic” as a result of the war in Ukraine, which he believed was a positive thing.
The Latvian president’s statement is an expression of open and unacceptable discrimination without precedent, effectively a new type of fascism. When looked in the context of Latvia openly glorifying and supporting Nazism by removing monuments to Soviet martyrs, as well as being ardent supporters of the fascist regime in Kiev, the non-condemnation from the European Union highlights that liberalism will always descend into fascism when non-Western powers challenge their hegemony.
During World War II, Latvians fought on the side of Hitler and served as guards at concentration camps. Just like what happened in Ukraine since 2014, Nazi collaborators are now being elevated as heroes in Latvia. Although defenders of anti-Russia policies point out that Levits could not be a fascist as he is Jewish, they also ignore Volodymyr Zelensky, also of Jewish heritage, is a gatekeeper of Far-Right ideology in Ukraine and describes the neo-Nazi Azov Battalion and Right Sector as heroes and patriots. In addition, Zelensky’s top financial backer, the Ukrainian Jewish energy oligarch Igor Kolomoisky, has been a key benefactor of the Azov Battalion and other Far-Right extremist militias.
21st century fascism is motivated by Russophobia rather than antisemitism, as was the case in the previous century. As pointed out by Toward Freedom: “In its bid to deflect from the influence of Nazism in contemporary Ukraine, U.S. media has found its most effective PR tool in the figure of Zelensky […] For a U.S. media engaged in an all-out information war against Russia, the president’s Jewish background has become an essential public relations tool.” Therefore, dismissing Levits’ anti-Russia racism because of his Jewish heritage does not hold and is a lazy effort to dismiss the emerging fascism in Latvia.
Since the three Baltic countries – Lithuania, Estonia and Latvia – achieved independence in the early 1990’s, they have worked towards a homogenisation that does not respect minorities. It is recalled that an “Estonianization” was carried out in Estonia in the 1930s, which forced Poles, Russians, Germans and Jews to adopt Estonian surnames. This is similar to the Ukraianization that was forced on Russian-speakers in Ukraine, as well as the Polish, Romanian and Hungarian minorities, since 2014.
It cannot be discounted that Russian people, supposedly living in liberal Europe, will find their language, culture and identity attacked, with individuals targeted for being proud of their ethnicity. Latvian authorities could take away the Russian minorities citizenship or even expel them from the country, with little to no recourse from Brussels.
Emboldened by the lack of condemnation from the West, Latvia’s actions could force Moscow to make its own retaliatory measures, such as terminating diplomatic relations and the transit of goods through these countries, from which they earn fees. Although initial reactions in the West might be celebratory, just as happened in Ukraine, it is remembered that Kiev is now the biggest loser as it is not earning full transit fees for the transportation of Russian energy.
Latvia recently declared Russia a sponsor of terrorism and suspended the issuance of tourist visas to Russian citizens. In addition, the Baltic countries are actively fighting against their Soviet legacy, among other things, by disgustingly demolishing monuments to Soviet martyrs and soldiers who defeated Nazism in World War II.
Two million people live in Latvia, of which more than 220,000 are so-called non-citizens. These are permanent residents of the country, whose ancestors arrived after 1940 when Latvia became a part of the Soviet Union. Non-citizens, despite being in Latvia for multiple generations, have limited rights and cannot participate in elections and referendums. To obtain Latvian citizenship, they need to go through the naturalization procedure by passing an exam in Latvian language and history.
This procedure itself is a demonstration of fascist policies in supposedly liberal Europe.
None-the-less, calling for the “isolation” of Russians in Latvia is an othering resembling the policies of Nazi Germany against its Jewish and Roma citizens. Yet, as Russophobia has become a mainstream and acceptable form of racism and fascism in the liberal West, it will continue to receive little condemnation.
Woke nonsense. Transgender SJW’s whine about fascism.
Hmm … isolating an ethnic population yet Latvia has a very high ‘democracy index’. The Democracy is a list of how well countries obey the U.S.
Oh and we (the U.S.) are destroying Venezuela for having a disputed election in 2018 because we in the U.S. are so pure on that front. Disputed election bad, ethnic cleansing good.
Something bad happens long time before. The bad incident of 2018 is only a result of that. Even China has stopped lending them any money.
Not forgetting their own disputed election, back in 2020. The West has gone completely insane and fully supported by the media. Here in the UK, the masses appear to thrive on the insanity of our leaders and media, as we embrace ethnic cleansing and genocide of any nation that disagrees with the ambitions of the City of London.
We see the results of democrasy and live in them and compare.
As usual Your dirty kind make bad names for what we do and what we get by Western Economics.
Russia retook the Baltics by the Molov-Ribbentrop treaty and washed away so many of the people from there.
Even so many of the leftovers prefared Nationalisme and Nazisme. The main influencers there even was germans since it was Christianized by Germany and the whole area – Finland included – by Sweden and Denmark(1219) as well.
Its true there are many russians there. The Latvias and the rest(swedes, germans) was killed away. First cam the Russians, next came the nazis and next cam Russians.
By taking side so many were killed and killed and killed.
By that there were made space for so many Russians. If Hitker has won it most likely has had even more Germans.
Not even the language is Slavic. they just as the Preussen land(tribe) has their own language and German or Jiddish as second and their language.
Religion also is Lutheran just as in Northern germany and Skandinavia. there are no connections to the inland state Russia and its connections to Konstantinopel.
Does he mean like in concentration camps, is this Nazi mad? Does he want Russia to nome him?
NO IDDI
He says, that citicens which cant even speak the local language as second language prefaring Russian TV and Russian schools should leaveto there or might be fenced.
Thats only a minority of the Russians there. The rest has willingly or unwillingly accepted their new destiny.
And it is about the same for the Russians in Ukraine.. You have Ruussian-kraines by old tradtions, but the Russian-Russians in the Krustjov addiction should change or leave. Most of them live in the Donetsk and Luhansk Regions.
But also here You have Russians which even very Russians has accepted their destiny. It matter where they live, have their job a.s.o. It might be forgotten many parts of ukraine has a very misted population and not only Russians and Ukras.
The Baltic states believe their NATO membership gives them unconditional protection to taunt the Russian Federation.
They do not realize that, in the event of an East-West war, they will be, as NATO’s sacrificial front line, simply annihilated. Neutrality for them would have been the prudent choice…
This levits is as Latvian as zelensky is Ukrainian.
Thats non of Your business. According to their constitution he has been elected to president no matter You might say he is a skinny russian elephant with 5 legs.
You lie to Yourself. None taunt the Russian quagmire and respect is both ways. Those Russians 100% are imjport made by Stalin and Co.
The ones layal to that most change or go.
Get ready for the 90% Russian Speaking People’s Republic of Latgale.
Thats not the point. The point fx is the people there at least has to have latvian as a good second language.
Of course many in Latvia forced with soldiers in the Molotov-Ribbentrop pacts also has been forced to speak Russian.
So whats the matter with the other way around ???
Didn’t they do the same to those of a certain faith, back in the 30s/40s? Why have our leaders regressed and forgotten all about WWII?
Why do those that are part of the 3 Sea Initiative, the nations within the Adriatic, Baltic and Black Seas despise the people of Russia so much? Why is there so much racism and xenophobia in those nations, well the leaders of those nations? What are the values of the EU where racism is concerned, or does it only apply if you do not come from an Orthodox Nation?
You cannot be a fascist if you are Jewish??????
Wasn’t a certain Hungarian of a certain faith, bragging, back on the 20 December 1998, on ’60 Minutes’ that the best times of his life, was when he was a Na$i Collaborator, back home in Hungary, back in 1944? The same George S. that no longer believed in God, owing to the fact he thought himself God? The same narcissistic sociopath that was one of the mentors of Elinsky, over in Ukraine? The same narcissistic sociopath who funded both the Orange Revolutions in Ukraine, 2004 and 2014 and is the first to accuse others of being anti-semitic if they are critical of his actions?
Then you have the other mentor of Elinsky, the one time Leader of the European Je*ish Community, over in Ukraine, who funded theUkraine’s Na$i ‘Azov’ Battalion.
Not forgetting the Simon Wiesenthal Centre, which was fully supportive of the Na$is over in Ukraine, back in 2014 and blamed Russia for events post Maidan.
The list goes on, and the Zionists, those Nomadic Turkic People, adopted Judaism, Christianity and Islam, whilst learning Hebrew. Funny how you find so little semitic DNA over in Israel, but, lots in Palestine. Also, it is funny how those with the DNA of the Nomads from North Caucasia were more than happy to go after those of a certain faith, but, the Biblical branch and blame it on others. Who created the Bolshevik Communists and also the Naitonal Socialist (German) Working Party that Adolf led? Was it not the Zionist Bankers?
William Casey – Director of the CIA – back in 1981 – “We’ll know our disinformation program is complete when everything the American public believes is false.”
Excellent summary.
Thank you.
Gorbi should have been president 20 years before he did. Jeltzin too. Both could have saved the selflicted collapse and declining.
Noe will attack Russi from Latvia. No one else. They decline themself well. We hope they will make a wall to protect themself against us and themself.
Latvia… Going down the same yellow brick Zionist road to hell that Ukraine went down. Go ahead… Poke the bear, see what happens when those “non citizens” storm the Latvian parliament and string up the NAZI party occupying the country.