Conclusion
Latvia is perhaps the only EU member state where the far right has been included in the government coalition for years without significant condemnation from its European partners. As such, Latvia can serve to help far right ideas seem more respectable in European politics, for example, political homophobia. At the same time, Latvia’s geopolitical position and cultural makeup makes it an ideal entry point for ideological conflicts imported from further East: the Ukraine crisis has mobilised both Latvian and Russian ultranationalists, and may still destabilise the societal balance. At the same time, the advent of the “white genocide” thesis and Islamophobia is a reminder that, just as in the 1990s, Latvia could be a “growth market” for far right positions from western and northern Europe, increasing their overall clout in the EU.(…)