Putin deplores "swinish" treatment of Russians
Russia's President Putin also justifies the invasion of Ukraine with concerns about the allegedly oppressed Russian-speaking population. Now the Kremlin leader is worried again: this time about the treatment of Russians in Latvia. He is calling for a "correction" in relations with the country.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has criticized the Baltic state of Latvia's treatment of part of the Russian population in threatening terms. "I do not believe that happiness will come to those who pursue such a policy," said the Kremlin leader in Moscow on Monday. Those who treat parts of their population - literally - like pigs should not be surprised if this turns against them.
According to the state agency TASS, Putin said this at a meeting of the so-called Russian Human Rights Council. The Kremlin-controlled council discussed changes to the law on foreigners in Latvia.
Of the approximately 1.8 million people in the small EU and NATO country, around one in four is of Russian origin. However, many Russians are not Latvian citizens, but have non-citizen status. In the wake of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, Latvia has introduced language tests for these non-citizens to test their everyday knowledge of Latvian. They are threatened with the withdrawal of their residence permit.
Putin calls for "correction" of relations
Putin expressed understanding for the fact that every country requires its inhabitants to have a basic knowledge of the culture and language. However, he said that the status of non-citizens was a legal aberration. Moscow would shape its relations with countries that discriminate against Russians accordingly. It could also support Russians abroad to return to their historical homeland. "If they don't want to leave but are expelled, then we can't do anything about it, but we must create appropriate conditions for these people," Putin was quoted as saying by TASS. According to the report, Putin called for a "correction of our relations with the countries where this kind of thing is taking place".
The Kremlin has also justified the war against Ukraine with the alleged oppression of the Russian-speaking population in the neighboring country, among other things. However, a large part of the Russian-speaking population, which tends to live in the war zones in the east of the country, is suffering from the Russian attack.
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Source: www.ntv.de
