Latvia demands loyalty. Russian-speaking residents must choose

The population of Latvia numbers 1.86 million, including about 460 thousand Russians. At the time of the outbreak of full-scale war in Ukraine, nearly 30 thousand of them held Russian citizenship, and some had pro-Kremlin tendencies. The authorities gave them a choice: mastering the language and obtaining a Latvian passport or moving to Russia. For thousands of Russian-speaking residents, this was a manifestation of discrimination, because in their consciousness Latvia is not an independent country, but an integral part of the “great Soviet family”. 2 thousand Russians did not intend to learn Latvian and moved to Russia.

Latvian-Russian history

Russian-speaking residents are the legacy of two Soviet occupations of the country, as Latvians call their forced membership in the Soviet Union. The first began in June 1940, when the Red Army invaded independent Latvia, which was established in 1918 on the ruins of the Russian Empire. The country was incorporated into the USSR as the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic, and the new authorities repressed 40 thousand people: officials, police officers, military personnel, teachers, and farmers refusing to join collective farms. In 1941, the republic was occupied by Germany.

In 1945, the second Soviet occupation began. All local matters were decided by Moscow. Soviet military units were stationed in the republic. Russian-speaking residents from all over the Soviet Union were sent to work in Latvia, while Latvians were directed to remote regions of the country. Thanks to this policy, the percentage of Russians increased from 10% in 1940 to 34% (901,361 people) in 1989. Russian was made the official language. It was used in workplaces, schools, and universities. Latvian language proficiency was not mandatory, and Russians were reluctant to learn it.

In the early years after regaining independence in 1991, the authorities mistrusted members of the Russian minority because – as explained by BBC Dr. Ammon Cheskin from the University of Glasgow – due to their numbers, they could become an influential political factor and lead to an alliance with Moscow or serious concessions to it. Therefore, citizenship was granted to those whose ancestors lived in Latvia before 1940. This excluded newcomers from the Soviet era and their descendants, who did not vote in parliamentary or presidential elections nor ran for office.

In the late 1990s, the rules for granting citizenship were relaxed – anyone who successfully passed an exam in Latvian language, history, and culture, and proved knowledge of the national anthem and main principles of the constitution could obtain it. By 2014, 142 thousand people had done so (later no statistics were kept). But tens of thousands did not apply for their country's passport. Instead, they went to the Russian embassy in Riga and received a passport with the double-headed eagle on the cover immediately. In Latvia, they stayed based on a permanent residence card, which guaranteed the same rights as citizens, including the freedom to travel within the EU.

The Latvian authorities turned a blind eye to this. They did not hinder Russians in maintaining their identity: schools with Russian instruction, Russian associations, and media operated in the country. The war in Ukraine forced Riga to change its previous policy – since the pretext for Moscow's aggression was the desire to save compatriots in Donbas, it was impossible to ignore the fact that in 2022 about 460 thousand Russians lived in Latvia. Moreover, 29,500 of them not only held passports with the double-headed eagle but – as Latvian MP Andriej Judin put it – “mentally, they were in Russia”.

It's high time to choose a national identity

My previous experiences convinced me of the correctness of these concerns. Between 2012-2019, when I attended conferences in St. Petersburg, Russian-speaking participants from Latvia (and also from Estonia) consistently surprised me with their attachment to Moscow and hatred of their own country. Conversely, a businessman from Riga visiting Łódź argued that Latvians are not a nation but a wild tribe civilized by the Soviet Union.

In 2022, legislation regarding the granting of Latvian passports was amended. Russian citizens were deprived of permanent residence cards. They were allowed a two-year stay during which they could apply for citizenship. One of the conditions was passing a language exam at only A2 level, covering skills such as conducting basic conversations in shops or restaurants, understanding announcements at the station, or writing a postcard. Additionally, prospective citizens had to respond to questions about Russian aggression in Ukraine, NATO, and the annexation of Crimea. Those who did not obtain a passport after two years were required to leave Latvia.

Commenting on these changes, the aforementioned Andriej Judin emphasizes that Riga is not fighting Russian-speaking people but wants residents with passports from the Russian Federation to choose their own identity.

The most difficult test for Russians was the Latvian language exam

Initially, 12 thousand people failed the exam on the first attempt. 8 thousand passed after subsequent attempts. 4 thousand have not proven their knowledge of the state language to this day. Among them is 74-year-old Galina Nikolayeva, the heroine of a BBC report titled Learn Latvian or leave?, who came to Riga with her parents as a six-year-old in 1958. She completed school and university there, worked as an engineer at a scientific institution, got married, and had a daughter. But she did not learn Latvian because – as she explains to journalists – everyone in the USSR communicated in Russian. In the early 2000s, she became a Russian citizen. She claims it was to visit her mother living there. In 2023-2025, she failed the Latvian exam three times, despite taking tutoring classes beforehand. She considers the requirement to prove language proficiency as “torture of old people”.

A similar situation was faced by 44-year-old Dmitrij Rogow, born in Latvia. As a graduate of a school with Russian instruction, he did not learn Latvian. In 2014, he received a Russian passport, and after marrying a Russian citizen, he lived for several years in St. Petersburg, where their daughter was born. Later, he returned with his family to Latvia, worked for a company organizing music events across Europe, traveling with a permanent residence card. In 2023, he lost his documents along with his job. He failed the language exam but does not intend to learn Latvian because – in his opinion – “every Latvian should speak Russian unless they are a nationalist”. Referring to this and similar opinions, Andriej Judin emphasizes that Latvia is an independent country, so knowledge of the official language is justified. He has the right to this judgment because he is himself a Russian by origin and uses Latvian as a member of the Latvian parliament.

Farewell to Latvia

Dmitrij describes losing his permanent residence card and the need to apply for citizenship as a “hostile action by the authorities”. In his opinion, since 2022, “Russophobia” and “discrimination against the Russian minority” have intensified in the country. The questions about his views on the war in Ukraine (which he calls a “special military operation”) and his attitude towards the European Union and NATO, Dmitrij calls provocation. He adds that he is not interested in politics and has a “neutral stance” on events in Ukraine. Although upset with Riga’s policies, he intends to continue living in Latvia.

People who did not complete the formalities should have left the country by the end of 2025. However, this did not happen. “Please do not imagine that these people will be put into cars and escorted to the border by police,” – says lawyer Yelizaveta Kriwcowa to CurrentTime TV, specializing in immigration issues. “The state gives them the opportunity to settle their affairs and treats each case individually, e.g., extending their stay by a year and allowing language studies. They should contact the appropriate authorities or hire a lawyer,” she explains.

Also, Galina Nikolayeva, who was supposed to leave Latvia on October 13, 2025, still remains in Riga. She will obtain a temporary residence permit due to her husband's Latvian passport. As a stateless person since October 2025, she does not receive a pension; her husband supports her. If he were to die before her, she would have no legal grounds to stay in Latvia. Meanwhile, Dmitrij Rogow told BBC that he works hard and has no time for language learning or visits to authorities.

2 thousand citizens of the Russian Federation who did not pass the exam decided to voluntarily leave Latvia. Among them were Anastasia and Siergiej Sbitniew and their six-year-old son Bogdan, who moved to Novgorod Veliky in 2023. They explained their departure by the fact that in Latvia they could not go to the cinema with their child because films in Russian were not shown there. They did not intend to send their son to a Latvian school because from the 2025/2026 school year, (and indeed it happened) Russian-language schools were to close (referring to changes in the education system, Siergiej asked: “What was wrong with Soviet textbooks?”). Moreover, the spouses consider Latvia an integral part of Russia and expected that Moscow would annex this Baltic country, as it did with Crimea in 2014.

The situation of Russian-speaking citizens is a boon for Moscow. In Russian media, Latvia is portrayed as an extremely Russophobic country where Russians are forced to use the Latvian language in state institutions. When it turned out that several thousand Russian-speaking residents were threatened with deportation to Russia, deputies of the State Duma, including the ultra-nationalist Piotr Tolstoy, began comparing Latvia to Nazi Germany. Reports appeared in the media about the arrest of a pensioner for improperly filling out a questionnaire at the immigration office and brutal deportations of elderly people who had appealed to Moscow authorities for harsh measures against Riga.

Information from Russian media can be dismissed as nonsense, but Latvian authorities do not underestimate the danger, because a similar narrative was present in Moscow before the invasion of Ukraine. That is why Riga is currently considering dismantling railway tracks connecting Latvia with Russia.

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