Putin Fires Warning Shot at NATO Country

Russian President Vladimir Putin issued fresh threats to Latvia on Monday as tensions continue to rise between Moscow and NATO members.

Putin's statements, made during the Kremlin's Council for the Development of Civil Society and Human Rights, were directed at policies from Riga, the Latvia capital, regarding its Russian-language-speaking minority. Latvia is one of three NATO and European Union members that share a border with mainland Russia.

Latvia has previously faced backlash for enacting laws that U.N. experts say are discriminatory to minority ethnic groups in the country, including efforts to make Latvian the only language used inside school buildings by 2025. In May, Reuters reported that dozens of Russian citizens living in Latvia were ordered to take a basic Latvian language test to prove their "loyalty" to Riga's government in light of the war in Ukraine.

"I don't think that happiness will come to those who pursue such policies," Putin said during the presidential council meeting Monday, according to a report by RBC Ukraine, which cited a clip of the council's meeting shared to Telegram.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/putin-fires-warning-shot-at-nato-country/ar-AA1l3nK2?ocid=NL_ENUS_A1_00010101_1_1