A Cry for Justice From Latvia: Russians Treated Like Second-Class Citizens, Putin Promises to Help

— And now, the question #337 from our website. Alexey Ksenzov asked: "Mr. Putin... It's not even a question, it's a request. ...take action against Latvia. Why don't they let us study in Russian? Impose some sanctions. Thank you".

 

President Putin: I've already said that unilateral sanctions can't solve any issues, they make them worse. Regarding the situation of our compatriots in the Baltic states, we constantly address this issue and draw the focus of the Baltic governments towards it. Latvia's no exception. It's hard to imagine that in the modern civilized society hundreds of thousands of people can be declared non-citizens. There's no such term. There's no such term in international law. There are people with citizenship, dual citizenship, or no citizenship. But there's never been a term for "non-citizen." It was made up by the Baltic states. They did it to limit the legal rights of the people who live in those territories.

But our means of protecting the interests of our compatriots must not exacerbate their situation. We're engaged in a dialogue with our partners in the EU. I hope that ultimately they'll feel ashamed of pointing out violations of human rights outside of the EU's borders while ignoring the rude violations of those rights within the territory of the EU. There's a proverb that says: "He who points out the speck in another's eye doesn't see the plank in his own." We'll continue to work hard to resolve this issue without harming those who live in those countries.