Russians in Latvia must pass a Latvian language test or they will be deported

In Latvia, all Russians between the ages of 17 and 74 must pass a Latvian language proficiency test. Otherwise, they may be deported from the country. The atmosphere in the Latvian language classes is tense. Russians complain that they have to learn a new language and tell stories about grandmothers who died through an exam. How it all goes in reality, said the publication TSN.

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This decision provoked a strong reaction in the Kremlin, but in Latvia, after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it is considered a just defense of national security.

Russian passport holders who want to keep their residence permit must prove that they know the state language. Several tens of thousands of people live in a country with such a document. These are mainly those who have lived and worked in Latvia for decades. Many did not change their Russian passport in order to freely travel to relatives in the Russian Federation and Belarus.

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Latvian journalist Imants Liepins says that for a long time in the country such people were treated liberally and did not require knowledge of the language, but everything changed with Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

“Unfortunately, there is a percentage of Putinists in Latvia - Russian citizens who do not want to learn the Latvian language. Those who don’t want to learn the language have little real chance of staying,” says the journalist.

The atmosphere in language classes is reminiscent of a school - Russians sit at their desks, listen attentively to the teacher and learn words in Latvian from pictures.

Some do not hide their indignation at the fact that they have to learn the language of the state in which they live.

“Well, firstly, it was a surprise, and secondly, I think it’s wrong to expel you from the country because of your language. People simply worked in Russian teams; the Latvian language was not needed. Now they are retired, they go shopping at the store and so on, but they speak Russian,” complains Valentina.

“It is not true that we only gave one year to study the Latvian language. They are given 50 years to use the state language. This is the problem of those people, this is not our problem,” say the locals.

The news about the need to take language exams in Latvia outraged the Kremlin. The Russians were unable to express their protest through diplomats, because since the beginning of this year their staff has been reduced, and the ambassador has been deported from the country. On television and in the media, they began to invent fakes about the dead in the queues for the exam of grandmothers and mass Russophobia.

Imants says the language test isn't really as hard as they make it out to be in Russia.

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"It's a very simple conversation, something like 'I'd like to have dinner, but only fish, not meat' or 'My name is Liene and I'd like to go to London.' This applies to everyday life, as well as various activities and daily routines,” explains Liene Voronenko.

To learn simple phrases necessary for everyday communication on the street, Russians have free courses and several months. After failed testing attempts or refusal to take it before the end of the year, they face deportation.

After a full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Latvians are trying to ban everything that resembles an aggressor: they closed the Kremlin channels, dismantled Soviet monuments, stopped issuing tourist visas. Now the authorities are thinking about how to abolish education in Russian as well.

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