of public life. We remember that teaching in Russian has previously been eliminated in all Latvian educational institutions, including pre-schools. Such absurd initiatives, which affect the interests of almost half of the population of Latvia and run counter to numerous recommendations from relevant international structures, have long since been a shameful practice. Nationalist circles in Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have for many years been propagating a distorted interpretation of the historical events of the 20th century, aimed at maintaining the Russophobic course being pursued by their states. An integral part of their policy was the bestowing of hero status on Nazi collaborators, which led to the current wave of desecration of graves and the demolition of monuments to Soviet soldiers, including Russians and Latvians who defeated Nazism. The West's further condoning of these disgusting phenomena in the Baltic countries is a sure trigger for racial hostility, intolerance and xenophobia, and a means of awakening the repression and oppression of Russians. We consider this attitude to be unacceptable, and anticipate that the special rapporteur will devote a separate study to this issue. Thank you for your attention.