In Latvia, law enforcement officers detained MP Alexei Roslikov, who shouted in Russian at a parliamentary session and made an obscene gesture.
This is reported by the Latvian media LSM and Apollo.
The detention was carried out by the countryʼs State Security Service (VDD) on Monday, June 16. This was confirmed to Latvian Television by the head of the parliamentary faction of the political force "For Stability" Svetlana Chulkova to which Roslikov himself belongs.
He is no longer a member of the Latvian Parliament — his term ended on June 10. According to the broadcaster LSM.lv, on Saturday, June 14, Alexei Roslikov was elected to the Riga City Council.
The State Language Center will initiate administrative proceedings due to the politicianʼs actions. The police will also consider the appeal of several deputies of the Sejm regarding Roslikovʼs behavior, writes Apollo.
- On Thursday, June 5, Alexei Roslikov spoke during hearings on the declaration “On the criminal Russification of Latvia by the Soviet occupation regime and the prevention of its linguistic consequences”. He stated that “Russians stood on the barricades together with Latvians”, and then the state allegedly “bombarded” Russian-speaking families with various laws and decisions. He then shouted in Russian: “There are more of us, and the Russian language is our language!” and made an obscene gesture towards the deputies.
- Already on Monday, June 9, the VDD initiated criminal proceedings against Roslikov: he is suspected of aiding the aggressor state of Russia in actions directed against Latvia, as well as inciting national hatred and enmity.
- This is not the first time that Latvian authorities have investigated the statements of Roslikov and his party colleagues. In December 2022, the State Security Service issued him a warning after an interview with the Russian sanctioned media outlet Izvestia.
- In its 2024 annual report, the Latvian State Security Service noted that the For Stability party pursues an information policy similar to the Kremlinʼs propaganda resources.
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