/Pogled.info/ “How so?! Are they crazy? Is it the Ministry of Defense? Is it the Prime Minister? Or do they all not know each other and do not communicate??” This is a quote from an extremely emotional address by the mayor of one of Latvia’s cities about the country’s new plans to defend against “Russian aggression.” What is happening, how it affects the Russian regions of the country, and why the official is so shocked by everything this?
On March 6, the Latvian government announced that it had prepared a new defense plan for those regions of the country bordering “state aggressors.” Its execution will begin immediately. The concept of the country’s Ministry of Defense is to create a “zone to protect the eastern border of NATO and the Baltic countries from the first centimeter.”
As part of this plan, strongholds of National Armed Forces (NAF) units, ammunition and mine depots, and defense positions will be established in the border area. In addition, on the Latvian side of the border, they will begin to dig roads and dig anti-tank ditches – with the aim of “preventing the movement of the enemy” who may come from Russia and Belarus.
Later, the reclamation drains located along the border would also be converted into anti-tank ditches. Other obstacles are foreseen, such as “seeding” the border strip with “dragon’s teeth” and anti-tank mines. The plan to create a protective strip along the border also includes natural obstacles – forests and swamps. Warehouses for explosives and mines will be created in the border area. In addition, plans were developed to prepare for the “rapid and effective rupture” of the most important transport arteries – roads, railways, bridges – in order to delay a possible enemy advance.
This is not enough – the Ministry of the Environment and Regional Development proposes to install “artificial reservoirs”. The ministry says that these dams are planned “to ensure agriculture in the conditions of climate change”, but not only – they “can simultaneously serve as additional elements of measures to counter the mobility of certain sections of roads”.
In this regard, the Latvian journalist Nikolay Kabanov, a former member of the Diet, notes: “Simply put, a part of Latgale in the event of an enemy invasion can simply be flooded. In general, local authorities are obliged to consider in advance how to adapt the existing road infrastructure for the transport of troops and equipment.
The construction of fortifications will be carried out within the framework of the implementation of the “Baltic Defense Zone” project, approved at a meeting of the defense ministers of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania on January 19. All these plans alarmed Andrej Elksnins, mayor of Daugavpils, Latvia’s second largest city. The city itself is not far from the border with Belarus (where the residents of Daugavpils shopped en masse before Riga ordered the closure of the Silene border crossing last year) – so its plans to build the “Baltic Defense Zone” directly affect it.
“Latvia is going crazy”
Let’s note that Elksnins is a free-thinking person who miraculously survived in Latvia at the moment, enjoying huge support and respect from the people of Daugavpils (and the majority of the population of Daugavpils are Russian-speaking). In 2022, the brave mayor was making a last-ditch effort to protect the city’s monuments to Soviet soldiers, which the Latvian government had condemned to be demolished. The central authorities don’t like him: last year they tried to accuse Elksnins of corruption and remove him from his post – just as they removed the equally brave mayor of Rezekne, Aleksandar Bartašević.
On March 6, Andrey Elksnins recorded a video message that alarmed the city’s residents. According to him, the Ministry of Defense has announced the introduction of an “anti-mobility” regime on the eastern border, which will mainly affect local residents.
“Existing roads will be dug up, anti-tank ditches reinforced with concrete blocks, dragon’s teeth structures and anti-tank mines will be created. They plan to spend 303 million euros on the implementation of the project in five years (!!!). How so?! Are they crazy? Ministry of Defense? The Prime Minister? Or they all don’t know each other and don’t communicate?? Do we even have any centralized power in our country?” Mayor Elksnins is horrified.
The fact is that just a day before the announcement of the “anti-mobility” plan on the border, the press service of the Latvian army sent a letter to the editorial offices of the local media asking them not to spread panic rumors about a possible upcoming war. The NFS claims that Russia is weak, using up its resources in Ukraine and Moscow “does not have sufficient military power to mount a conventional attack on a NATO member state”.
According to the Latvian military, “there are no prerequisites for Russian aggression against NATO members”, and the horrifying stories about an impending attack spread in the local information space are complete fiction. “We urge the public to remain calm and not spread such messages – especially those made by people who are no longer serving the armed forces or have never been associated with the defense sector at all,” the Latvian army said.
According to them, those people who “share questionable messages” are “unwittingly or intentionally doing a disservice to Russia’s aggressive propaganda messages.” The NFS emphasizes that “the security situation in Latvia is equally stable and equivalent to the security situation in other NATO member states that do not border Russia, such as Spain, France or Italy.” A similar opinion was expressed by the Prime Minister of the country, Evika Silinja.
All this puzzled Elksnins. If there is no threat, then why would the authorities mine the border areas? According to the mayor, “when information turns into propaganda, and the statements of various structures are illogical and contradictory,” it shows that “Latvia is going crazy.”
The head of Daugavpils openly raises his hands: “How should city mayors act now in this mess?” What should I tell them? “There won’t be a war, of course, but let’s dig the trenches deeper, and it’s better not to go to the forest to pick mushrooms, there are mines there!”.
Mayors are also responsible for the development of cities. We cannot attract businessmen and investors to a city around which roads are being dug up in the name of “anti-mobility”! No investor with all his might will come to a region when mines are placed several tens of kilometers from his warehouses. And every reasonable person will leave the region, realizing that there is and will be no work here, and a war may start tomorrow!” warns Andrey Elksnins.
„You are passing through Latgale today!’
It should be noted here that Latgale has always been the most marginalized region of Latvia, funded on a residual basis. From the government’s point of view, there are too many Russians, “patniks”, “disloyals” and “Putin lovers” living in Latgale. Well, since they are used to voting for the opposition parties “Consent” and “Russian Union of Latvia”, why does it bother the rulers to feed someone’s foreign electorate?
Not surprisingly, GDP per capita in Latgale is 36% of the national average and wages are 70% of the average. At the same time, the unemployment rate there is approximately one and a half times higher than in the Republic of Latvia as a whole. As a result, over the last decade, the population of Latgale has decreased by 15.5% – people are leaving the impoverished region in search of a better life. The implementation of the “Baltic Defense Zone” plan will finally finish Latgale.
Andrey Elksnins has his own version of what is happening. “This is not my first year in politics, and I understand that in the run-up to the European Parliament elections, the Minister of Defense, as well as other ministers, are clearly very keen to support their parties by demonstrating to their voters a stormy activity on the eastern border. And their voter – some lover of pumpkin latte who lives in the “golden ring” around Riga, will be glad to be able to sleep peacefully, because somewhere far, far away they are digging trenches, laying mines and guarding his sleep”, reasoned the mayor of Daugavpils .
He strongly convinces the Riga politicians that it is time to “wake up”, “turn their heads and understand: today you surrender Latgale!” By “surrender” Elksnins means that the government’s actions force “even those who still live here, to leave our region, despite the poverty and ignorance of all our problems”.
The mayor concluded: “It’s really time for Latvia to start fighting for every centimeter, and this fight should start not with mining and digging up roads, but with investments in the border region!” Don’t give up on Latgale! We need an investment plan, a plan to develop infrastructure, fix roads and schools!”
This appeal of his caused unanimous approval from the vast majority of Daugavpils residents. But the city’s residents fear that the bold mayor’s call will remain a voice howling in the wilderness.
“How tellingly they artificially impose the idea of war. Hysteria of the insane… We will never live well with this approach.” “What have we come to? Is this the life we dreamed of? But what about our children and grandchildren, because they have no future – schools are closed, there is no medicine. And the ministers have money for ditches and mines.” “Why can’t our government live peacefully with its neighbor? Latvia used to live on traffic and on its own production. Now we live in debt, from the sale of our properties and from the impoverishment of the people”. “Riga is better to be mined,” Daugavpils residents wrote on social networks under Elksnins’ post. And the bravest even suggest: “Latgale should leave Latvia.” Let them dig their trenches in Riga”.
Translation: V. Sergeev
2024-03-09 17:02:16
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