The damage inflicted on Latvia’s economy by what the country considers a Soviet occupation from 1940 to 1990 has been estimated at 185 billion euros ($209 billion) by a Latvian research committee, Latvian news website DELFI reported on Monday.
Committee spokesperson Ruta Pazdere said that the damage done to the country’s demography and its environment during the same period had been estimated in the tens of billions.
Pazdere announced the figures at the launch of a number of new books on the history of the Soviet occupation of the Baltics, the Latvian Leta news agency reported.
Speaking at the launch, Latvian MEP Inese Vaidere stressed the need to work on a joint understanding of history.
“Without research into the past, there is a risk that we will repeat the same mistakes,” she said to DELFI.
The lawmaker also noted “identically criminal” similarities between Nazi and Soviet regimes, according to DELFI.
The special committee, created eleven years ago, focuses on 40 areas of research, including the damage incurred under Soviet occupation. As well as focusing on Latvia’s economy, they consider human loss — by calculating the number of people who were deported to Russia or fled to the West — and the occupation’s influence on Latvian culture, religion and countryside.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
