The Baltic countries.. between the jaws of the Russian bear and the claws of the NATO eagles

After Russia annexed Crimea, countries such as Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania feared that they would meet the same fate after they gained their independence from the Soviet Union in the early nineties of the last century. These countries are still inhabited by a large number of Russian-speaking people, and this is what makes these The region is a hotspot that can explode at any moment, especially when forces from the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) converge every moment you feel that the Russian bear is fidgeting in the Baltic Sea basin.

Lithuania.. the mediation of the contract and the address of the balance

It does not mean that there are groups of tourists captured by the camera of the director of the movie “The Baltic and the Russian Bear” - which is from the Island World series produced by the island - in Vilnius, the beautiful capital of Lithuania;

It has become safe from the Russian threat, as the country is preparing - with the help of friends in NATO - for any possible intervention by Russian forces, and military training exercises are taking place regularly on Lithuanian lands near the border.

The matter is not limited to the preparedness and readiness of the armed forces only, and not even to calling young people from the age of 19 years to compulsory conscription. Rather, awareness and psychological mobilization reach almost the entire population, including children in schools, by publishing warning and educational books and pamphlets in the event of any Russian move. .

Although Lithuania does not lie on the Russian border, it receives threats like other neighboring countries

For its part, Russia is actively broadcasting inflammatory propaganda through its media directed at the Russian minority in Lithuania, where the Russian-speaking population in Lithuania is about 7% of the total population, and this is a small number if we compare it with the Russian minority in neighboring Latvia, where it constitutes Russian speakers account for 40% of the population of this country.

While the Latvians live the ninth of May each year as the anniversary of the occupation of the capital, Riga, by the Soviet forces, the joys permeate the Russian minority, which considers this occasion a celebration of the victory of the Soviets over the Nazi forces.

Latvia.. A barrel of gunpowder and matches

While the Russian minority in Lithuania has been assimilated and integrated into life in general, the great difficulty faced by Latvian Russians is to integrate normally, as most Russians there do not master the Latvian language at all, and this stands as an obstacle to their naturalization, as you find most of them from the category of “Bidun” who do not hold citizenship Latvians, numbering at least 300,000.

Although 40% of Latvians speak Russian, it is an unrecognized language in the country, not to mention the serious obstacles that the state places in front of opening schools for Russians there.

The propaganda and incitement war between politicians on both sides does not stop. At a time when the Latvian president raises doubts about the loyalty of these minorities to their country, Latvia, and that they receive moral and material support from Russia, Russian officials do not stop calling for the application of human rights regulations to the “Bidun” group in Latvia. And expedite granting them Latvian citizenship.

And when the Latvians praise the strength of NATO and boast that their country is a member of it, the Russians show their great concern about the presence of these forces on Latvian soil, and they say: Why are they massing their forces at our door?

What did they miss here at our door?

It is very difficult for Russian Latvians to integrate normally

The mayor of the capital, Riga, Mr. “Yoshikov,” who has Russian roots and is the head of the largest political party in Latvia, does not hide his admiration for President Putin, and considers him the ideal solution for the Russians in Latvia.

Suspicions began to hover around Yoshikov when his successive visits to the Russian embassy were recorded, and pictures were taken of him with possible Russian spies, but this never undermined his popularity as a brilliant politician. Indeed, if he had the opportunity to vote for him, he would have become a Bidun. Without a doubt, the head of the Latvian government, even the investigative journalist who published the story of his contact with the Russian intelligence, was subjected to a lot of physical and psychological harm, and his news website was even hacked several times, which suggests that the Russians there really constitute a state within a state.

Mrs. Chedonica, who is also of Russian origin and a member of the European Parliament, does not hide her bias towards the Russians. Rather, she organized a referendum in the predominantly Russian province of Latgale on the independence of Crimea or its accession to Russia, in reference to her wishes that the same measures could be taken in this regard. province in order to re-annex it to Russia.

Estonia... cautiously calm

The Estonian city of Narva, on the northeastern border of Estonia with Russia, is also a hotspot for explosion, as this city is inhabited by no less than 92% of Russian speakers, compared to only 3% of Estonians.

It is clear that Estonia has received waves of Russian refugees fleeing Ukraine, as the victims of the unquenchable war between Russia and Ukraine are many, and the Russians in Estonia do not hide their sympathy for the Russian state, and they openly declare that the United States is the reason for fueling national conflicts in this region.

Estonia has taken in waves of Russian refugees fleeing Ukraine

On the Estonian-Russian border, and in a small, quiet village called "Mixia", people woke up to news that resembled police stories. A squad of Russian Federal Intelligence services breached the border and kidnapped an Estonian citizen named "Kohver", who later appeared to be an agent accused by Russia of espionage for the European Union.

The official Estonian reaction was very angry, and accused Russia of manipulating the security of the Baltic states, which called on the leaders of the European Union countries to travel to Latvia and call from there to include the largest number of countries independent of the Soviet Union in Europe immediately, and Ukraine was also present strongly. in the Crimea file.

However, what was happening outside the conference halls was not necessarily the same as what was happening inside them. Mass demonstrations of Russian-speaking Bidoon gathered, denouncing European interference in their affairs.

With the passage of time, the picture becomes more clear, and it appears in its details that these countries bordering the Baltic are the brightest point of contact on the geopolitical map between Russia and NATO with its wings, the European Union and the United States of America, and that unless all parties show restraint and wise political dealing with the affairs of national minorities in these countries;

The conditions will be qualified for a dangerous explosion with unimaginable consequences.