State Police promise to crack down on any aggression against Latvia during Russian presidential elections

On the Remembrance Day of the Latvian Legionnaires, 16th of March, and during the Russian presidential elections on the 17th of March, Latvian State Police will be on high alert and will be cracking down on any signs glorification of Russian aggression “without mercy”, said Chief of State Police Armands Ruks in an interview to LTV programme Rīta panorāma.
The presidential elections in Russia will be taking place on the next day after the 16th of March, which is when Latvia holds the annual Remembrance Day of the Latvian Legionnaires. It should be noted that Russian citizens living in Latvia will be able to participate in Russian presidential elections at the Russian embassy.
The chief of Latvian State Police shared with LTV his observations, saying that lately there has been a slight increase in the glorification of Russian aggression among residents. According to him, this could be related to the upcoming presidential elections in Russia. “We can see attempts to prepare the soil for propaganda. We can see the 16th of March is around the corner. Immediately after that there will be the 17th of March. There is no shortage of challenges,” said Ruks, adding that police are intensely preparing for these two days.
“We will have a stern approach. Glorification of Russian aggression in calling specific war criminal their president or other forms of glorification will be suppressed without any mercy. Our measures will be very stern, but still in line with the law,” the chief of State Police promised.
In regards to various ways provocations may take shape in Latvia, Rus revealed that, for example, last night the police received information about five “Z” letters placed in public places, which, since the beginning of the Russian war in Ukraine, have been considered a symbol glorifying Russian military aggression.
The chief of police also said activities like that are a test of law enforcers’ abilities and capacity. This is why the police will try to respond to each incident as quickly as possible.
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