Disinfo: Latvia rewrites World War II history

Summary

Latvia is engaged in rewriting history, speaking out against the fireworks in honour of the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Riga from Nazi invaders. Soviet troops liberated Riga from the Nazis on 13 October 1944, the victory of the USSR in the Great Patriotic War does not need to be rewritten, this is an historical fact.

Disproof

Another example of pro-Kremlin historical revisionism. More cases here. The Soviet Union occupied Latvia twice. The first time the occupation lasted a year. In the summer of 1940, when Nazi Germany attacked France, the Red Army occupied Riga. This was enabled through a secret protocol to the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact on the separation of spheres of influence between the Soviet Union and fascist Germany. The second time, Soviet troops captured Latvia on 13 October 1944. Modern Latvia received full independence only after the collapse of the Soviet Union. In 2015, the Ministers of Justice of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia signed a joint declaration on the calculation and the need to receive compensation for damage caused by the occupation of the USSR. The Baltic States' leadership have repeatedly emphasised that Russia is the successor of the USSR, therefore, it has an obligation to compensate the Baltic countries for the losses incurred. Latvia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs also emphasised that any events planned in Russia to celebrate the liberation of Riga from Nazi troops are unacceptable, because for the Baltic countries this "liberation" meant only a change from one occupying power to another, this one lasting 50 years.

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  • Reported in: Issue 168
  • DATE OF PUBLICATION: 12/10/2019
  • Outlet language(s) Russian
  • Countries and/or Regions discussed in the disinformation: Russia, Latvia
  • Keywords: Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, USSR, WWII
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Disinfo: The Baltic States joined the USSR in accordance with international law

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Disproof

A recurring attempt of historical revisionism aiming at justifying Soviet actions. On 23 August 1939, the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany signed a non-aggression (Molotov-Ribbentrop) pact whose secret protocols divided the territories belonging to Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Finland, and Romania into Soviet and Nazi spheres of influence. The Baltic States were not beneficiaries of the Molotov-Ribbentrop pact. Like other countries mentioned in the pact, they lost their independence and territories. Soviet occupation of the Baltic States lasted for 50 years and resulted in mass deportations and repressions against local populations. 24 December 1989, the Parliament of the USSR, the Congress of the People’s Deputies, adopted a resolution, denouncing the secret protocol of the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact. An English translation of the full text here:

The Congress notes that during this period the relations of the USSR with Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia were regulated by a system of treaties. Pursuant to the 1920 Peace Treaties and 1926-1933 Non-Aggression Treaties, the signatories were obliged to honour each other’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and inviolability under any circumstances. The Soviet Union had assumed similar obligations to Poland and Finland.

See similar disinformation narratives on history and Baltic states here and here.