Marathon Pundit: Russia asking interesting questions about Ukraine at Latvia border crossing

Zatlers, bottom right. with Little
Marathon Pundit in 2008 in Sece, Latvia

Russia is quite interested in the opinions of Latvians crossing into Russia from the Latgale region.

From the Wall Street Journal--paid subscription required:

The head of Latvia's national security committee is accusing Russian intelligence agents of discretely surveying Latvian opinion near the Baltic nation's eastern border, much like it did in Crimea before annexation of the Ukrainian region.

Valdis Zatlers, Latvia's former president now chairing the parliament's security committee, said Russian agents are questioning travelers crossing the Latvian-Russian border region of Latgale and working to determine their attitude toward Russia's annexation of Crimea and subsequent developments in Ukraine.

The Latgale region is generally considered a relatively impoverished area and has a high concentration of ethnic Russians, reflecting the overall population of Latvia.

When a referendum to make Russian the second state language in Latvia was held in February, 2012, Latgale was the only region to vote in favor—by 55.6%—while the proposal was rejected by 74.8% of voters nationwide.