Latvia will not extend residence permits previously issued to Russian citizens. In the future, residence permits will not be extended in general, except for rare cases, stated Prime Minister of Latvia Krisjanis Karins, reports Delfi.

In the coming weeks, the government will take specific decisions on this issue, he said. Karins pointed out that today Russian citizens are not issued visas, not counting in exceptional cases, as well as virtually no residence permits.

Latvian President Egil Levits also called earlier to reconsider the regulation. According to senior government officials, Russian citizens will no longer have renewable residence permits, excluding special cases.

Parliamentary Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Zanda Kalnina-Lukashevicha said this morning that marriages could be classified as exceptional cases. If a citizen of Russia or Belarus is married to a citizen of Latvia, the basis for obtaining a residence permit will be considered sufficient.

In turn, Minister of the Interior Kristaps Eklons said that applicants for permanent residence permits should be required to pass a test in the state language.