{"id":34035,"date":"2025-09-01T15:22:07","date_gmt":"2025-09-01T12:22:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/?p=34035"},"modified":"2025-09-01T15:36:44","modified_gmt":"2025-09-01T12:36:44","slug":"if-your-country-has-a-russian-speaking-minority-russia-will-turn-it-against-you-the-baltics-case-if-your-country-has-a-russian-speaking-minority-russia-will-turn-it-against-you-the-baltics-case","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/2025\/09\/01\/if-your-country-has-a-russian-speaking-minority-russia-will-turn-it-against-you-the-baltics-case-if-your-country-has-a-russian-speaking-minority-russia-will-turn-it-against-you-the-baltics-case\/","title":{"rendered":"If Your Country Has a Russian-Speaking Minority, Russia Will Turn It Against You: The Baltics Case"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"c-prose__lead c-prose__ignore\">\n<p>While bombing the very Russian speakers he claims to \u201cprotect,\u201d Putin continues to push for Russian language status in Ukraine. The reason is purely utilitarian: for Moscow, Russian speakers are tools to use against the states where they live\u2014and the Baltic countries offer a clear example.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>If\u00a0your country has any Russian-speaking communities, Russia may see an\u00a0opportunity to\u00a0assert influence. For decades, Moscow has exploited language and disinformation to\u00a0advance its strategic goals and lay the groundwork for future invasions.<\/p>\n<p>This approach has been used repeatedly. In\u00a0Georgia, Russian policy\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2006\/11\/13\/world\/asia\/13ossetia.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener nofollow\">stoked<\/a>\u00a0tensions in\u00a0the Tskhinvali region and Abkhazia, culminating in\u00a0the 2006 \u201creferendum\u201d\u2014an overwhelming vote for independence conducted under heavy Russian influence and widely rejected as\u00a0illegitimate by\u00a0both Georgia and the international community.<\/p>\n<p>The same tactics were applied to\u00a0Ukraine, where in\u00a0the years leading up\u00a0to\u00a0the 2014\u00a0invasion, Russian propaganda\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usni.org\/magazines\/proceedings\/2025\/june\/justifying-invasion-case-study-russian-propaganda?utm_source=chatgpt.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener nofollow\">followed<\/a>\u00a0a\u00a0consistent pattern rooted in\u00a0Soviet-era information warfare but adapted for the digital age, targeting both domestic and international audiences.<\/p>\n<p>Today, social media amplifies this strategy. Beyond Russian TV\u00a0channels, online groups, and entertainment-focused communities, Moscow\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/united24media.com\/latest-news\/how-russia-uses-memes-fake-news-and-bots-to-fuel-its-information-war-against-ukraine-and-allies-2392\" target=\"_self\">operates<\/a>\u00a0a\u00a0more insidious information campaign. A\u00a0recent report from the Center for Countering Disinformation\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/cpd.gov.ua\/reports\/analitychnyj-zvit-vplyv-rosijskoyi-propagandy-v-krayinah-baltiyi\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener nofollow\">highlights<\/a>\u00a0Russia\u2019s targeted propaganda in\u00a0the Baltics, aimed primarily at\u00a0Russian-speaking populations.<\/p>\n<h5 class=\"c-post__lg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-34036\" src=\"https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5b8d08ea7ad5a84b0ed9bf6278122757-578x400.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"578\" height=\"400\" \/><br \/>\nA\u00a0Georgian woman casts her shadow as\u00a0she walks past nationalistic posters depicting Russia\u2019s aggression on\u00a0Georgia, on\u00a0August 18, 2008. Photo by\u00a0Marco Longari\/AFP via Getty Images.<\/h5>\n<h2 id=\"genc27c61\">Turning language into a\u00a0weapon online<\/h2>\n<p>The Baltic states have sharply restricted the activities of\u00a0Russian state media. In\u00a0response, pro-Kremlin propaganda shifted away from official TV\u00a0channels and websites to\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/united24media.com\/anti-fake\/how-russia-tries-to-control-your-social-media-feed-the-baltic-states-case-10613\" target=\"_self\">social media<\/a>\u2014primarily Telegram, TikTok, Facebook, and X, where pro-Russian figures and anonymous accounts now spread the Kremlin\u2019s messages.<\/p>\n<p>The key false messages regarding the Russian-speaking minorities in\u00a0Latvia, Lithuania, and Estonia are that they face:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>discrimination<\/li>\n<li>rights deprivation<\/li>\n<li>persecution for their language and ethnicity<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>But what does this propaganda look like in\u00a0practice?<\/p>\n<p>While most Russian speakers in\u00a0the Baltic states are older generations, Kremlin-linked TikTok accounts, for example, still target Baltic youth, producing content in\u00a0Russian to\u00a0shape their opinions and instill loyalty to\u00a0Russia and its narratives.<\/p>\n<p>These accounts brand crackdowns on Russian propaganda\u2014from a country waging a war of aggression against its neighbor\u2014as \u201cfree speech violations\u201d and Baltic state actions as \u201cNazi-like,\u201d calling it \u201cRussophobia.\u201d<\/p>\n<article class=\"c-entry c-entry--bg c-entry--wide c-prose__entry c-prose__ignore my-9\">\n<div class=\"c-entry__content\">\n<div class=\"c-entry__date opacity-100\">\u041en X, such accounts also claim that the so-called \u201cRussophobia\u201d is rampant in the Baltics and insist that \u201cwithout cooperation with Russia, the Baltic states are weak.\u201d<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p>Combining openly propagandistic messages, pseudo-analytical content, and \u201cculturally nostalgic\u201d themes, Telegram channels, meanwhile, also attempt to\u00a0create a\u00a0distorted image of\u00a0the Baltic states as\u00a0\u201cincapable,\u201d \u201crepressive,\u201d and \u201cdependent on\u00a0the West.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUSSR nostalgia\u201d content is\u00a0specifically aimed at\u00a0the older generation. Russian propaganda on\u00a0Facebook operates covertly and is\u00a0tailored to\u00a0the local context, using community groups and pages that appear to\u00a0be\u00a0ordinary local networks\u2014such as\u00a0\u201cTallinners\u201d or\u00a0\u201cRussian-speaking Estonia.\u201d<\/p>\n<h5 class=\"c-post__lg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-34037\" src=\"https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5f1d677a46bef73f5c119c9a6eea8677-600x400.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5f1d677a46bef73f5c119c9a6eea8677-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5f1d677a46bef73f5c119c9a6eea8677-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5f1d677a46bef73f5c119c9a6eea8677-1000x666.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5f1d677a46bef73f5c119c9a6eea8677-120x80.jpg 120w, https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5f1d677a46bef73f5c119c9a6eea8677.jpg 2040w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><br \/>\nBooks are scattered among the debris near a\u00a0residential building damaged by\u00a0Russian missile strikes in\u00a0Kyiv, Ukraine, June 24, 2023. The book at\u00a0the forefront is\u00a0\u201c&#8217;How Ukraine lost Donbas\u201d by\u00a0Denys Kazanskyi and Maryna Vorotyntseva on\u00a0the onset of\u00a0Russia\u2019s military intervention into Ukrainian territory in\u00a02014. Photo by\u00a0Aleksandr Gusev\/SOPA Images\/LightRocket via Getty Images.<\/h5>\n<p>These Facebook accounts and bots push ideas that aid to\u00a0Ukraine is\u00a0\u201cfoolish\u201d and that \u201cthe West exploits the Baltics,\u201d while actively claiming that \u201clife was better with Russia.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>By\u00a0mixing nostalgic posts about \u201cpeaceful life in\u00a0the USSR,\u201d everyday complaints, and memes criticizing NATO, the EU, and Western values, they portray the Russian-speaking communities in\u00a0the Baltics as\u00a0both \u201cvictims of\u00a0discrimination\u201d and \u201ccompatriots Russia must protect.\u201d Pseudo-news pages and groups create the impression of\u00a0widespread support for Russia.<\/p>\n<h5 class=\"c-post__lg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-34038\" src=\"https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/d059802619b5abbf79396e80945e4a2f-549x400.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"549\" height=\"400\" \/><br \/>\nLatvia\u2019s Russian nationals took to\u00a0the streets in\u00a0Riga, Latvia, 29\u00a0October 2003\u00a0to\u00a0protest the government reform of\u00a0Education in\u00a02004\u00a0that was due to\u00a0rise percentage of\u00a0Latvian teaching up\u00a0to\u00a060\u00a0percent for Russian schools. Photo by\u00a0Ilmars Znotins\/AFP via Getty Images.<\/h5>\n<h2 id=\"gen4869a4\">Russification of\u00a0the Baltic states<\/h2>\n<h3 id=\"gen39e453\">The Soviet legacy<\/h3>\n<p>The Baltic states were independent between the world wars but were forcibly\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/euvsdisinfo.eu\/report\/the-soviet-occupation-of-the-baltic-states-is-a-myth\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener nofollow\">annexed<\/a>\u00a0by\u00a0the Soviet Union in\u00a0June 1940\u00a0after a\u00a0military occupation and the imposition of\u00a0puppet \u201cpeople\u2019s governments.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The process involved political, economic, social, and cultural restructuring to\u00a0integrate Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania fully into the Soviet system.<\/p>\n<p>Under Soviet rule, Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania were\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/dergipark.org.tr\/tr\/download\/article-file\/701004\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener nofollow\">subordinated<\/a>\u00a0to\u00a0Moscow\u2019s interests. The USSR\u2019s Russification policies reshaped the region\u2019s ethnic composition, creating tensions between native Baltic populations and Russian-speaking settlers. Soviet ideology obscured these conflicts, claiming harmony among all groups and equal political and cultural rights.<\/p>\n<h5 class=\"c-post__lg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-34039\" src=\"https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/97b2fca75550d83a6281779d7caaacb2-600x396.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"396\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/97b2fca75550d83a6281779d7caaacb2-600x396.jpg 600w, https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/97b2fca75550d83a6281779d7caaacb2-768x507.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/97b2fca75550d83a6281779d7caaacb2-1000x661.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/97b2fca75550d83a6281779d7caaacb2-120x79.jpg 120w, https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/97b2fca75550d83a6281779d7caaacb2.jpg 2040w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><br \/>\nLithuanians crowd-with Lithuanian flag and banner which reads: &#8221;Free Lithuannia is\u00a0guarantee of\u00a0Perestroika&#8221;, in\u00a0the center of\u00a0Vilnius on\u00a0January 10, 1990, during a\u00a0demonstration advocating for the country independence. Photo by\u00a0Vitaly Armand\/AFP via Getty Images.<\/h5>\n<p>Baltic culture was systematically suppressed. Russian was imposed as\u00a0the official language, forcing local populations to\u00a0deal with authorities in\u00a0Russian rather than their native tongues. Major institutions across the USSR operated in\u00a0Russian, and most important cultural, scholarly, and scientific work was produced in\u00a0Russian as\u00a0well. This widespread use of\u00a0Russian weakened the status and use of\u00a0Baltic languages across society.<\/p>\n<p>The Kremlin\u2019s long history of\u00a0using language and propaganda to\u00a0influence Russian-speaking communities shows no\u00a0sign of\u00a0slowing. From Soviet-era Russification to\u00a0modern social media campaigns, Russia continues to\u00a0exploit minority populations to\u00a0advance its geopolitical goals.<\/p>\n<h5 class=\"c-post__lg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-34040\" src=\"https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5b77e71953d70850b2912539e119faf1-600x400.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5b77e71953d70850b2912539e119faf1-600x400.jpg 600w, https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5b77e71953d70850b2912539e119faf1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5b77e71953d70850b2912539e119faf1-1000x667.jpg 1000w, https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5b77e71953d70850b2912539e119faf1-120x80.jpg 120w, https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/5b77e71953d70850b2912539e119faf1.jpg 2040w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\" \/><br \/>\nDancers perform at\u00a0the Tallinn Song Festival Grounds during the 28th Laulupidu Song and Dance Festival in\u00a0Tallinn on\u00a0July 4, 2025. Photo by\u00a0Raigo Pajula\/AFP via Getty Images.<\/h5>\n<h3 id=\"genb6e720\">The push to\u00a0safeguard Baltic languages<\/h3>\n<p>In\u00a0the wake of\u00a0Russia\u2019s full-scale invasion of\u00a0Ukraine in\u00a02022, the Baltic states have been taking bold steps to\u00a0safeguard their languages and cultures.<\/p>\n<p>Estonia, for instance, made a\u00a0significant shift by\u00a0phasing in\u00a0Estonian-only instruction in\u00a0schools\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.educationestonia.org\/estonian-education-language-reform\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener nofollow\">starting<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0the 2024\u20132025 academic year that will last until 2030. Meanwhile, Latvia is\u00a0stepping up\u00a0its language policies with the 2023\u00a0National Security Concept, which\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/eng.lsm.lv\/article\/society\/defense\/28.09.2023-saeima-approves-updated-national-security-concept-for-latvia.a525735\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener nofollow\">mandates<\/a>\u00a0that, from 2026\u00a0onward, all public media content must be\u00a0exclusively in\u00a0Latvian or\u00a0another language that is\u00a0part of\u00a0\u201cthe European cultural space.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Vigilance is\u00a0vital for Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. Protecting democratic institutions, local cultures, and independent media remains the strongest defense against a\u00a0quiet but persistent Russian influence seeking to\u00a0reshape these societies from within.<\/p>\n<h5 class=\"c-post__lg\"><a href=\"https:\/\/storage.united24media.com\/thumbs\/x\/9\/0a\/5c7e2b50c2b106a2cfc456b5ba4620a9.jpeg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-gallery-link=\"\" data-pswp-width=\"4096\" data-pswp-height=\"2730\"><picture><source srcset=\"https:\/\/storage.united24media.com\/thumbs\/720x\/9\/0a\/5c7e2b50c2b106a2cfc456b5ba4620a9.jpeg 1x, https:\/\/storage.united24media.com\/thumbs\/720x@2x\/9\/0a\/5c7e2b50c2b106a2cfc456b5ba4620a9.jpeg 2x\" media=\"(max-width: 575px)\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/storage.united24media.com\/thumbs\/720x\/9\/0a\/5c7e2b50c2b106a2cfc456b5ba4620a9.jpeg 1x, https:\/\/storage.united24media.com\/thumbs\/720x@2x\/9\/0a\/5c7e2b50c2b106a2cfc456b5ba4620a9.jpeg 2x\" \/><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazy entered loading\" title=\"Estonian President Alar Karis, Latvian President Edgars Rink\u0113vi\u010ds, Lithuanian President Gitanas Naus\u0117da at\u00a0a\u00a0meeting with Secretary-General of\u00a0the United Nations Ant\u00f3nio Guterres, September 25, 2024. Source: GitanasNauseda\/X.\" src=\"https:\/\/storage.united24media.com\/thumbs\/1020x\/9\/0a\/5c7e2b50c2b106a2cfc456b5ba4620a9.jpeg\" srcset=\"https:\/\/storage.united24media.com\/thumbs\/1020x@2x\/9\/0a\/5c7e2b50c2b106a2cfc456b5ba4620a9.jpeg 2x\" alt=\"Estonian President Alar Karis, Latvian President Edgars Rink\u0113vi\u010ds, Lithuanian President Gitanas Naus\u0117da at\u00a0a\u00a0meeting with Secretary-General of\u00a0the United Nations Ant\u00f3nio Guterres, September 25, 2024. Source: GitanasNauseda\/X.\" width=\"1020\" height=\"679\" data-src=\"https:\/\/storage.united24media.com\/thumbs\/1020x\/9\/0a\/5c7e2b50c2b106a2cfc456b5ba4620a9.jpeg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/storage.united24media.com\/thumbs\/1020x@2x\/9\/0a\/5c7e2b50c2b106a2cfc456b5ba4620a9.jpeg 2x\" data-ll-status=\"loading\" \/><\/picture><\/a>Estonian President Alar Karis, Latvian President Edgars Rink\u0113vi\u010ds, Lithuanian President Gitanas Naus\u0117da at\u00a0a\u00a0meeting with Secretary-General of\u00a0the United Nations Ant\u00f3nio Guterres, September 25, 2024. Source: GitanasNauseda\/X.<\/h5>\n<p>Former Latvian President Egils Levits has repeatedly\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.president.lv\/en\/article\/statement-president-latvia-egils-levits-regarding-election-participation?utm_source=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"external noopener nofollow\">linked<\/a>\u00a0Latvia\u2019s national security to\u00a0the preservation of\u00a0its identity and the rejection of\u00a0Soviet-era legacies. He\u00a0warned that Russia\u2019s \u201cyet undefeated imperialistic spirit will continue to\u00a0haunt Latvia and Europe,\u201d emphasizing the need for a\u00a0government and parliament that \u201cvalues our national, Latvian identity\u201d and works to\u00a0\u201cwipe away the last remnants of\u00a0occupation ideology from our public eye.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Levits\u2019 skepticism toward political actors who are ambiguous about Russia\u2019s aggression underscores a\u00a0core principle: national cohesion and a\u00a0clear sense of\u00a0identity are the first and most essential line of\u00a0defense against the Kremlin\u2019s interference.<\/p>\n<p>\u0414\u0436\u0435\u0440\u0435\u043b\u043e<a href=\"https:\/\/united24media.com\/anti-fake\/if-your-country-has-a-russian-speaking-minority-russia-will-turn-it-against-you-the-baltics-case-10885\"> United 24 Media<\/a><br \/>\n\u0424\u043e\u0442\u043e Depositphotos<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>While bombing the very Russian speakers he claims to \u201cprotect,\u201d Putin continues to push for Russian language status in Ukraine. The reason is purely utilitarian: for Moscow, Russian speakers are [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":34041,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[34,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34035","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ukrcy-news-eng","category-novyny"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>If Your Country Has a Russian-Speaking Minority, Russia Will Turn It Against You: The Baltics Case - UKRCY.NEWS<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ukrcy.news\/2025\/09\/01\/if-your-country-has-a-russian-speaking-minority-russia-will-turn-it-against-you-the-baltics-case-if-your-country-has-a-russian-speaking-minority-russia-will-turn-it-against-you-the-baltics-case\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"uk_UA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"If Your Country Has a Russian-Speaking Minority, Russia Will Turn It Against You: The Baltics Case - UKRCY.NEWS\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"While bombing the very Russian speakers he claims to \u201cprotect,\u201d Putin continues to push for Russian language status in Ukraine. 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