Latvian authorities have formally declared Riga-based Russian journalist Leonid Ragozin persona non grata, local media reported, and Ragozin himself confirmed on Wednesday.
Latvian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Līga Jermacāne told the outlet Delfi that an unidentified Russian national was added to the persona non grata list last Wednesday. Foreign Ministry adviser Toms Sadovskis said the basis for the decision will be withheld for “national security” reasons.
On Wednesday, Ragozin confirmed that he was notified of his expulsion the day before.
Ragozin claimed he was blacklisted in retaliation for his critical reporting and commentary on Western policy and far-right political networks.
He argued that Latvia intentionally declared him persona non grata to prevent him from appealing his expulsion in Latvian courts.
“For me it is a huge personal tragedy. I am being evicted from my only beloved home, deprived of my circle of friendship and support,” Ragozin posted on X.
In a Meduza interview published Tuesday, Ragozin said he was outside Latvia and expressed concerns that returning to Russia could put him at risk of imprisonment.
Ragozin is a former producer for the BBC Russian Service and editor at Russian Newsweek. His freelance commentary has appeared in recent editions of Al Jazeera, Jacobin and The American Conservative.
Ragozin drew public ire for comments he made on a far-left podcast where he argued that the Kremlin felt compelled to use “brute force” in response to Western encroachment on its sphere of influence.
In Wednesday’s X post, Ragozin said, “I condemn the Russian aggression and support Ukraine’s sovereignty.”
“But I’ll continue to criticize Western countries for mishandling this conflict,” he wrote.
In an August column for The American Conservative, Ragozin argued that ordinary Russians perceive greater threats from Western nations than from their own government.
Latvia has declared more than 150 Russian cultural figures, state journalists and commentators personae non grata since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
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