Latvia proposes to ban organized excursions to Russia and Belarus

In Latvia, a group of deputies from the New Unity party has submitted amendments to the Seimas (parliament) to the Law on Tourism, banning organized travel to Russia and Belarus. This was reported by Latvian news portal BB.LV on February 22.

According to the portal, this week the bill was considered by the parliamentary commission headed by Seimas deputy Skaidrite Abrama.

On behalf of the applicants, MP Janis Patmalnieks said that despite repeated warnings from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the State Security Service of Latvia, a number of legal entities in the country continue to provide tourist services in Russia and Belarus, thus "exposing citizens to the threat of arrest, as well as recruitment by foreign intelligence services."

Also, according to Patlamnieks, the state has the right to restrict this kind of entrepreneurial activity.

Opposition MP Andris Kulbergs asked what to do with Latvians who participate in similar tours organized by companies from Lithuania and Estonia. The supporters of the ban replied that neighboring countries would probably take similar measures. In turn, Kulbergs expressed doubts about such logic, recalling that the authorities acted differently in the issue of manganese ore transit.

"I remember that when we proposed to ban the transit of manganese ore, we were told that in that case other states would deal with it. Now we see that you have turned it completely the other way around. Very strange," Kulbergs said.

According to BB.LV, the Latvian Ministry of Economy supports the introduction of restrictions, but suggests clarifying whether the ban applies only to tourist trips or also to business and peacekeeping visits, which are often organized through travel agencies.

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Earlier, on February 10, the head of the Latvian Interior Ministry Rihards Kozlovskis said that Latvian residents should refuse to travel to Russia, because the Baltic republic can close the border between the countries within a few hours. He specified that the border closure was allegedly possible in case of a certain aggravation of the situation, but did not specify this statement.