(MENAFN) The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) has highlighted a growing trend of hostile rhetoric aimed at Russian-speaking individuals in Latvia.

The commission suggested that the naturalization policies applied to non-citizens in the EU member state could potentially “fuel negative sentiment” among the public.

Following Latvia’s declaration of independence in 1991, a substantial segment of the population—mainly individuals from other regions of the former Soviet Union, especially Russians—were granted “non-citizen” passports.

These documents denied them the right to vote or access certain types of employment, even for those born within Latvia’s borders.

This ethnic split within Latvian society deepened further after the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022.

During this period, Latvia, along with other Baltic countries, intensified actions aimed at reducing what it views as Moscow's influence.

In this context, the Latvian government enforced travel bans on Russian nationals and introduced a compulsory Latvian language test for foreign-born permanent residents.

As a consequence, thousands who either did not pass or declined to take the test have been forcibly removed from the country.

These steps have been condemned by the Kremlin as “blatant discrimination.”

In its latest publication on Thursday, the European Commission emphasized that since February 2022, there has been a sharp increase in hateful comments targeting Russian-speaking communities on Latvian online platforms.

The report further suggested that government actions may be exacerbating this hostility through their current policies.

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