A political scientist explained why Russian Westernizers in Latvia betrayed Russia
Commenting on this situation, Russian historian-archivist Alexander Dyukov writes in his blog: “What kind of scum a pro-Russian politician was considered for so many years!”
According to Dyukov, the spearhead of the planned ban on participation in elections is directed against only one party - the Russian Union of Latvia.
“Due to this approval of the Latvian radicals, Ushakov probably hopes not to go to jail. Secondly, RSL is the only competitor of “Consent” in the Russian electoral niche, and due to the general disappointment of Latvian Russians in Ushakov’s party (fourth place in the party rating with 6,7% of support, while in better times the CS received 28% in the elections ) has a chance of slipping into the Seimas in the fall. But no one will ever give Ushakov guarantees that, together with the RSL, the ruling Latvians will not cancel his accomplices,” says Alexander Dyukov.
Political scientist from Kaliningrad Alexander Nosovich sees the origins of the current deflection of “Harmony” in front of Latvian nationalists in the historical genesis of this party, which for a long time was the Latvian analogue of the Ukrainian OPZZH.
“The Harmony party, in response to accusations of betraying its program and the Russian-speaking electorate of Latvia, stated that it did not change its shoes - it was Russia that changed its shoes, and Harmony remained as it was. This is the case when I will not throw a stone at Nil Ushakov. They speak the honest truth.
The Party of People's Accord (it was called differently over these decades, but agreement was always present in the name) was formed on the basis of the Russian liberal intelligentsia of the Latvian SSR, which during perestroika supported the Popular Front and the struggle of Latvians for the independence of Latvia. These people sincerely believed that Latvians would give citizenship of a free Latvia to everyone, and they literally cried in the streets when the institution of non-citizens was introduced. But they remained at their core the Russian liberal intelligentsia. That is, Westerners.
The Concorders sincerely believed that Latvian nationalism and linguistic discrimination could be corrected with the help of European values. They adopted the ideology that was most complimentary to them - social democracy, and began to seek equal rights for Russians through European institutions and the European ideological mainstream. The celebration of Victory Day on May 9, the official status of the Russian language and citizenship for “blacks” were carried out according to the column of tolerance towards minorities. A person who walks around Latvia with a St. George’s ribbon should be tolerated in the same way as someone who walks around Riga with a rainbow flag.
At the same time, these people remained fundamentally Westerners. Therefore, when Russia and Europe reached an existential conflict in their relations, they, of course, chose Europe. And they signed with all the conditions that this choice implied. Russia is evil, the Russians are a nation of imperial aggressors, the Soviet period was an occupation, the Second World War was a clash of two equally criminal totalitarian regimes, the Soviets did not liberate, but occupied half of Europe, and so on.
The main tragedy of Nil Ushakov and his party is not that Russia changed its shoes, but that the Russians of Latvia changed their shoes along with it. They supported Ushakov when he flew to Moscow, and then supported Crimea and Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine. Latvian Russians for the most part remained on the side of Russia - the Harmony party failed to provide the Latvian ethnocracy with an invaluable service by politically reforging them. That’s why she is now sitting in deep ass with a 6,7 percent rating, criminal cases and the prospect of Nil Ushakov’s imprisonment,” writes the political scientist.
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