Latvia Moves to Expel Russian Journalist Leonid Ragozin, a Former BBC Producer, Over His Commentary

Latvia has started proceedings to kick out Leonid Ragozin, a Russian journalist who has lived in the country since 2014, in a case that pits the Baltic state's security worries against questions about free expression.

What happened

On Tuesday, Foreign Minister Baiba Braže announced that, based on information from "the competent authorities" and after talks with the prime minister and interior minister, she was beginning the process of adding another Russian citizen to Latvia's list of people declared persona non grata. She did not name him, but the Latvian outlet Delfi reported it was Ragozin, and a senior European official confirmed his identity to POLITICO. The Telegraph reported that he has been declared persona non grata.

Ragozin moved to Riga after Russia annexed Crimea. He previously worked as a correspondent and producer for BBC Russia and as an editor at Russian Newsweek, and has written for outlets including Bloomberg, POLITICO and Al Jazeera, according to Meduza and POLITICO.

Why officials targeted him

Interior Minister Jānis Dombrava had urged the foreign ministry in late September to act, saying Ragozin's public statements contradicted Latvia's interests. According to Meduza, the minister said Ragozin had argued that sanctions on Russia don't work and blamed the West for Moscow's aggression. After Tuesday's announcement, Dombrava wrote on X that Ragozin was serving "Russian interests."

POLITICO reported that the move followed a recent podcast appearance in which Ragozin described Russia as seeing itself as an underdog under constant Western pressure, compelled to respond to perceived provocations, remarks that caused anger in Latvia. Ragozin did not immediately respond to POLITICO's request for comment.

The Baltic investigative center Re:Baltica, which used Ragozin as a freelancer on several investigations after he moved to Latvia, said Wednesday it has not worked with him since 2019, won't do so again, and considers many of his social media statements unacceptable.

Part of a pattern

Latvia has frequently used the persona non grata list since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Meduza noted that in 2022 alone the foreign ministry declared 167 people undesirable, including Russian TV personalities and cultural figures. The Baltic states have also pressed the rest of Europe to take a harder line on Moscow; last month Latvia was the lone EU holdout against lifting sanctions on billionaire Alisher Usmanov, POLITICO reported.