Minister of Transport Jānis Vitenbergs has issued an order for all institutions and capital associations under the ministry to review their websites and pull all content in Russian language. The deadline for this is the 7th of February 2023, as confirmed by the ministry.
The minister also suggested correcting publicly available information in accordance with the existing political and economic situation following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
«Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, countless war crimes and atrocities against the Ukrainian people have forced application of vast sanctions both from Latvia and the European Union. It is unacceptable for us to continue communicating in a language the nation of which has caused such unimaginable devastation. We are doing all we can to reduce freight transport contacts with Russia. At the same time,
it is also important to cut the mental ties that certain of the ministry’s capital associations have woven over the years,» said the minister.
Although many of the ministry’s capital associations mainly operate only in Latvia – and have no need to develop exports or cooperate with countries that find it easier to communicate in Russian – their websites still feature content in this language.
The minister also laments that there are also visual materials and graphics that depict Russia as one of the export countries along with Latvia’s other foreign trade partners.
Also read: Latvian minister says it is too soon to speak of liquidation of Russian-standard railway lines