Following his recent public statements, Rezekne mayor Aleksandrs Bartaševičs was invited by Latvian State Security Service (VDD) to come in and provide explanations, as confirmed by the service.
VDD does not provide more detailed comments on this situation.
On 9 November demolition of the Monument to the Liberators of Rezekne, which was known as Alyosha among residents, was carried out in the city.
In his video published on Gorod.lv portal, the mayor of Rezekne Aleksandrs Bartaševičs spoke to the local residents in Russian language and explained his opinion about the situation with monuments in Latvia and the war in Ukraine.
First the mayor, standing next to the monument, said he stands next to the monument to the Rezekne’s Liberators from the Fascist Occupation. He said Russians in Latvia are subjected to a great deal of pressure for the mere fact that «they are Russians».
Many [in Latvia] are doing everything to make our children forget their native language by taking away the opportunity to learn it in school, said Bartaševičs. «I’m speaking Russian, because Russians in Latvia need rehabilitation.»
«We, Russians in Latvia, are not responsible for what is currently happening in Ukraine and we weep for all victims of this war, in which Slavic people die on both sides of the front. It is a tragedy for us all. We want peace for Ukraine and Russia as soon as possible,» he said.
Bartaševičs called the demolition of monuments in Latvia «barbarism» and said he tried looking for a compromise with the government. He suggested moving Alyosha to the local cemetery, but the government rejected this and other proposals.
He said he is worried about a possible «crack in society», which, he believes, is growing very rapidly. He added he cannot stop the demolition of monuments, but in his heart he still holds gratitude to his grandparents for their heroism in fighting fascism. Bartaševičs invited all residents to pass on this gratitude to their children.
Daugavpils mayor Andrejs Elksniņš is also in the sights of VDD. He, too, has made controversial statements recently.
At a press-conference held on Tuesday, 8 November, Elksniņš provided an explanation to the statement he gave Delfi earlier – that Crimea is now part of Russia. «I said Crimea is basically under Russian rule now – there are Russian laws and institutes of power there,» he said.
Daugavpils mayor mentioned that, considering Crimea’s legal status from the perspective of international law, there is a number of UN General Assembly resolutions in place, and Latvia’s position was formulated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in support of Ukraine’s territorial integrity within its internationally recognised borders and proposal to end Crimea’s occupation and declaring the referendum of 2014 as null and void.
Latvia’s State Security Service (VDD) actively monitors the online activity of 14th Saeima deputy Glorija Grevcova, including on the video sharing network TikTok, as BNN was told by VDD.
BNN previously reported that shortly after giving her oath as deputy of 14th Saeima, Grevcova gave an interview to the radio station controlled by President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko. In it she said that residents in Latvia are evicted from their homes for even the smallest utility payment debts. She also said there is a strict censure in place in Latvia.
On the same day Grevcova’s opinion regarding the destruction of Soviet heritage in Daugavpils was featured on Russian state television.