Russian opposition journalist Leonid Ragozin, residing in Latvia on the basis of a residence permit, came under fire today from the Minister of the Interior Janis Dombrova, who urged the Minister of Foreign Affairs Baiba Braze in a letter to include Ragozin in the "blacklist." The Minister of the Interior informed about his letter on social media: "Considering the fact that Russian citizen L. Ragozin has publicly expressed opinions for a long time that contradict the interests of the Latvian state, I therefore urge the Minister of Foreign Affairs to include the mentioned individual in the list of persons undesirable for the Republic of Latvia (persona non grata). In his public activities, L. Ragozin: accused the West of aggressive actions by Russia; spoke about the ineffectiveness of sanctions, calling them those that provoke Russia; attempted to justify Russia's aggressive foreign policy, doubting that Russia could have imperialistic interests in gaining influence in Ukraine and elsewhere; discredited Ukraine, its political leadership, and armed forces. His opinions often coincided with messages aimed at reducing Western support for Ukraine; at public events, he criticized the West and Ukraine. In this regard, his actions can be interpreted as those aimed at promoting Western public opinion in a direction favorable to Russia. Due to such activity, the political undesirability of L. Ragozin in Europe (persona non grata) would be justified; however, these actions are not considered sufficient to establish the circumstances mentioned in the Immigration Law that empower the Minister of the Interior to include in the list of foreign individuals whose entry into the Republic of Latvia is prohibited, therefore I urge the Minister of Foreign Affairs to make a decision to include the mentioned individual in the list of persons non grata." It is unlikely that three days before the elections, Braze will play along with her political competitor.
